Wicked
by MusicalLife13
Summary: Start practicing your 'do-re-mi's and get your dancing shoes ready. The ARC is putting on the smash musical 'Wicked! Time to see the (hidden) talents of some of our favourite ARC employees, and maybe find a little romance along the way...
1. No One Mourns the Wicked

A/N: Wow, this writing/publishing thing is pretty addictive! I'd forgotten how much fun these characters are... ;)

Ok, so before I even start this story, here's the scoop: it is NOT meant to be taken seriously. It's a preposterous idea that popped into my head after watching series 4&5 and listening to the soundtrack of one of my favourite musicals. After that, I couldn't get the image of Jess singing out of my head, so I just went with it. So yes, I know that this would NEVER happen in the Primeval world, and no, I really don't care. :p That said, I am going to try and keep the characters as realistic as possible. So for those of you hoping for a Becker singing scene, I'll apologize now for the lack of one. I will promise a few surprises along the way, and hopefully a lot of laughs for my silly little story...

************ No One Mourns the Wicked ************

"Ok," Matt shouted as he angrily stormed towards the ADD. "Whose idea was THIS?"

Jess and Connor both turned to him, completely perplexed. They'd never seen him this furious over anything that wasn't security-related, so it had to be big. He was waving around a piece of paper, and his eyes threatened to burn it to smithereens with one fiery glance.

"What's going on?" Abby asked as she and Becker raced in from the other entrance. They'd heard Matt from the hallway and bolted in as fast as they could.

"Future-boy is a tad miffed about something," Connor offered.

Becker shot him a light, sideways glare. "Thank you, Captain Obvious."

Matt was now standing directly in front of Jess – actually more like towering over her seated figure – as he tossed the paper off to the side. "It was your idea, wasn't it?" he queried, however his tone wasn't so much asking but more accusing.

Jess paled visibly, and both Abby and Becker moved to help. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she replied honestly.

"This has to be one of your schemes. You're the only one foolish enough to think that something like this would actually be a good idea!"

At his tone of voice, and the sight of tears in Jess' eyes out of his peripheral, Becker stepped between them. "That's enough!" he said firmly. "Back off, Matt."

"Or else what?"

"Or else you'll have the rest of us to deal with," Abby offered before Becker could reply. She was standing at Matt's left, crouching just a bit as if waiting for him to lash out at her. Becker held Matt's gaze, as if daring him to try something. Jess tried to get herself composed, trying to determine what it was that she had done to offend their team leader. Connor, meanwhile, picked up the piece of paper that Matt had tossed to the floor in his rage.

"I know this was HER idea," Matt ranted. "She's always the upbeat one, trying to inject cheer into every single day, no matter how awful it is. Well guess what, Jess: life isn't a musical, and the idea of us putting one on is just ludicrous!"

"What are you on about?" Becker asked, as Abby and Jess both scrunched their foreheads together in consternation.

" 'Start practicing your 'do-re-mi's and get your dancing shoes ready. The ARC is putting on the smash musical 'Wicked',' " Connor read off of the flyer in his hand. Looking up, he realized that three people were now looking at him as if he had 3 heads. He turned it towards them so they could see he wasn't making it up.

"Not to place blame here, Jess, but this does seem to be something that you'd try to plan," Abby said quietly, glancing at her usually bubbly friend.

"I agree, but this wasn't me," Jess insisted.

"Stop lying!" Matt roared.

"Stop shouting at her!" Becker threw back, his fists clenching at his sides.

"Matt, I swear, this wasn't my idea. I've had some pretty hare-brained plans, but this is not one of them," Jess said, rising from her seat, and trying to help Abby separate the two alpha males.

"She's right," a voice said from the main entryway. Jess, Connor and Abby shifted their gazes to see their boss, James Lester stalking into the hub. Becker and Matt refused to break eye contact in their staring contest. "It wasn't Miss Parker's idea at all," Lester finished.

Jess breathed a soft sigh of relief as Connor posed the question that they were all now thinking. "Then whose idea was it?"

"Mine," came a soft yet confident female voice from behind Lester. He moved out of the way so they could see Lady Emily Merchant striding in.

At the sound of her voice, Matt swiveled to look at her, while Becker unconsciously shifted to stand closer to Jess. "Your idea?!" Matt asked, incredulously.

"Yes, my idea," she said calmly. "It's time we all experienced a little bit of normalcy around here."

"No offense, Em, but life around here isn't exactly normal to begin with and I'm pretty sure that putting on a musical is either," Abby stated.

Connor looked at her and raised his eyebrows. "I think I just relinquished the 'Captain Obvious' title." He chanced a glance at Becker to see that the man had a tiny smirk on his face.

"I'm well aware of life around here Abby, despite not having been here all that long," Emily replied. "But I've had enough of all of the negativity from everyone here, not just you lot. It's been fairly low-key lately, and I think it's high time that we all tried something a little different."

"Couldn't we just go grab a pint at the pub after work one day?" Connor offered.

"We could, but we already do that. I'm talking about something that's never been done here before."

"And you think a musical was the way to go?" Matt asked, still disbelieving.

Before anyone else could say anything, Lester jumped back into the conversation. "Lady Merchant's idea has my full support. I think it's high time that some of you got your…aggression…out in a non-violent way," he said, shooting particular looks at Matt, Abby and the Captain.

"No one's being forced to do anything," Emily said. "It's strictly a voluntary basis, but I've been talking to a number of people who seem keen to get involved."

"What exactly would this entail, Em?" Jess asked softly, coming out from behind Becker. He moved to stand behind her, making sure that his arm stayed in contact with her.

"Well, obviously, we'll need performers and stagehands, along with some help directing, creating sets and costumes, as well as some special effects."

"What's this story about, anyway?" Abby asked.

"It's the story of the witches of Oz," Connor answered. "Before Dorothy dropped in, that is." Once more, everyone's attention was on him, and he scrambled to explain. "I read the book a while ago, and it was pretty good."

"And I just saw the live show with Jess last week," Emily continued. "We left straight from work last Friday."

"That explains why you were dressed up so lovely that day," Becker said to Jess.

"Are you saying that I don't dress nicely on other days?" Jess asked him, giving him a crooked smile. Before Becker could try and stammer out an answer, Lester took control again.

"Auditions for the performers will be happening at the end of next week. Since Miss Merchant appears to have the most training and expertise out of everyone, she will not only be the musical director, but also one of the leads. We're looking for anyone with musical talent onstage, but will require a good amount of help behind the scenes, especially in the months leading up to this."

"Where exactly is this going to take place?" Becker asked.

"In the canteen. We shall build a stage there," Lester answered, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"And what about monitoring the anomalies?" Abby asked. "I know it's been calm around here lately, but there's always a chance…"

"Out of those not participating in the show itself, we will have a team ready to deploy if an incursion happens. They will still be able to enjoy the show from the audience, and we will keep the portable ADD in the canteen during the performance as well." Lester turned to look at Matt. "Now, Mr. Anderson, have you calmed that temper of yours, or should I allow Captain Becker to act on some of those more violent thoughts I know he was having towards you a few minutes ago?"

Matt stormed out in a huff as Connor snickered and Becker let loose a full smirk. Abby and Jess shared a grin.

"A musical at the ARC," Connor stated as the atmosphere cooled down. "Could be fun."

"At least we already have the winged monkeys covered," Abby joked.


	2. Something Bad

A/N: I tried uploading this earlier from my smartphone, but couldn't. Oh well, here it is. For those curious, Becker and Jess are NOT together. They're in the same place they were for series 4&5 - obviously crazy about each other, but not brave enough to do anything about it... ;)

************ Something Bad ************

"So despite it not being your idea, are you planning on helping Emily with this crazy plan?"

Jess looked over from her screen to see Becker leaning against the desk of the ADD. His expression was considerably more relaxed than earlier, and a soft smile played on his lips as he awaited her answer. She smiled brilliantly at him. "Of course. Would you expect anything else?"

He chuckled and shook his head. "Not at all."

"Are you?"

"Well since I'm definitely more of a behind-the-scenes guy, I figured I could offer to help with the prep work. That stage isn't going to build itself, and I wouldn't trust Connor with a hammer."

Jess giggled at the visual. "You mean, Mr. Take-Charge is actually going to let someone else drive for a change?"

"Oh come on, I'm not that bad." Jess fixed him with her patented look, and he crumbled. "Ok, maybe I am."

She grinned, knowing that she'd won. "Relax. You always have good intentions."

He smirked at her, and she felt her insides melt a bit. She both hated and loved that he had that effect on her. "So what are you going to help with?" he asked.

"Whatever Emily needs," she answered easily. "I'd like to help with the music, if I can."

"How?"

"Well I do have a bit of a musical background, after all."

"You do?"

She winked at him. "I am a woman of MANY talents, Captain Becker, a good number of which you don't even know about." She suddenly realized the double meaning to her statement, and her face started to burn. Turning away so he couldn't see her embarrassment, she happened to miss the light flush that stained his own cheeks at the images that went rocketing through his head at her words.

Luckily they were both saved by the anomaly warning bell. Springing into action, Becker grabbed for the black boxes while Jess' fingers started flying across the keyboard of the ADD.

"What have we got Jess?" Matt demanded as he strode in, Connor and Abby at his heels.

"Anomaly down by the bridge," she answered quickly. "Patching into CCTV now for a visual," she continued as they all sprinted from the Ops room, passing a black box and comm link to Emily as she joined them.

"No sign of a creature incursion yet, but I'll keep you posted." Jess' voice was calm in their ears as they climbed into the cars and drove off, but both Abby and Becker detected a slight shake due to her earlier embarrassment. "I'm detouring traffic as best I can, and have put out word to evacuate the area due to a possible sewer problem. There's also a back-up team being deployed for you as we speak"

"So what sort of things will we have to do for your auditions, Emily?" Connor inquired.

"Not exactly the best time or place, luv," Abby hissed, catching the angry glare that Matt was now giving Connor for bringing this up again.

"Why do you have such a problem with this, Matt?" Emily asked innocently over the comms from Becker's car. "I know that you didn't have a lot of happiness in your time, but maybe it's time to change all of that."

"Can we please focus on the task at hand?" Matt countered, keeping his voice as calm as he could.

"Jeez, usually it's Action Man who's got the stick up his – "

"What was that, Temple?"

Connor froze like a deer in the headlights, causing everyone, including Jess, to chuckle a bit. "Nothing, Captain," he answered, a definite tremor in his voice.

"Good lad," Becker finished, looking at the mess of traffic in front of them. "Jess, we've got a jam here. Any chance of getting us around it?"

"Take a right."

"When?"

"Now!" Everyone braced themselves as Becker and Matt swung the cars hard to the right and into an underground parking garage. "This will take you out the other side where you can pick up the side roads to the bridge."

"Thanks Jess."

"No prob – " Everyone grew a bit concerned when she was cut off with what sounded like a soft thud.

"Jess?" Emily asked. She was met with silence. "Jess, are you there?" Still nothing.

"Jess," Becker said into the comm, sounding much more calm than actually felt. "What's going on?"

"Guys, something's wrong. She always answers," Abby whispered, concern starting to leak into her voice.

"Try Lester's number," Matt offered. "It may just be a technical glitch with the ADD." No one wanted to speak to the fact that under Jess' command, the ADD never experienced glitches.

"Lester's not picking up," Connor confirmed less than a minute later, lowering his cell phone. "Which either means that he's in a meeting and can't, or – "

"Or something is very wrong back at the ARC," Becker finished, his knuckles whitening as he clenched his steering wheel.

"Becker, you and Emily go back and see what's going on. We'll stay on comm's and head for the anomaly. The back-up teams should be en route if not there already." Matt knew that Becker was already calculating the angle for his U-turn before he even spoke, but at least this way it would go into the records as an order and wouldn't get anyone into trouble.

"Let us know if you need us at the anomaly," Emily said as she clung to the door handle as Becker whipped the car around and headed back in the direction they'd come from.

It felt like an hour had passed by the time they roared back into the ARC carpark. Becker had barely thrown the car into park and turned it off when he and Emily sprinted from the vehicle towards the building. They practically jumped down the many flights of stairs to get to the Ops room, both silently agreeing that the lift would take too long. Just as they were coming down the last flight of stairs, they heard three horrific sounds.

The wail of one of their creatures, a terrified scream that Becker recognized instantly as Jess', and then sound of several EMD blasts.

Emily and Becker didn't slow as they pulled their own EMD's out of their holsters and bolted into the main room. They didn't even think about following protocol as they surveyed the sight before them.

All they could see was the back of a raptor, squealing towards the ADD. They could see EMD light blasts coming from around the front of it, but couldn't yet see the source. Nevertheless, they reared back and opened fire on the beast. It had obviously taken a good number of EMD hits before they'd arrived, because it only took a few from each of them to bring it down. It fell to the side of the room, landing hard close to the wall, and stirring up a bit of dust. It was only once they were sure it was down that Becker and Emily, breathing hard from exertion, looked over towards the ADD and the source of the other EMD blasts.

Jess stood in a fighting stance, with blazing eyes and wild hair that had fallen out of its ponytail, armed with a large EMD clenched tightly in her hands. She too was breathing heavily, and the fire in her eyes vanished when she looked up and saw her friends standing there.

Emily kept her gun trained on the raptor as Becker crossed the room so fast she barely saw him. He said nothing as he hauled Jess into his arms and held her so tightly to him that he lifted her a few inches off the floor. She let her EMD slip from her fingers as she brought her arms up to clasp behind his neck and tried hard not to shake when the fear of what just happened started to set in.

Becker could hear Emily speaking to Matt and the others over the comm's, but all he could think about was the tiny girl with her arms around him. They'd had far too many close calls with her safety in the last little while. First there was the episode with the beetles where she'd nearly died from anaphylaxis, then there was the future predators in the ARC incident, and now this. Becker wanted answers for why the raptor was where it was, and was ready to offer up some severe pain to whomever was responsible. But right now, all that mattered was that Jess was safe.

"I thought…I mean…I didn't…" Jess tried to say something coherent, but it just wasn't happening for her at that moment. Becker lowered her so that she was on her own two feet (still nestled in the safety of his arms, of course), and gently brushed some of her loose hair out of her face as he looked at her.

"Shh, it's ok," he said as her bright blue eyes finally focused on him. "You're ok." It was more of a reassuring statement for himself, but calming her down would help him relax a bit as well. He cupped her cheek and took deep breaths to slow his own heart rate, and she mimicked his actions, her hands now coming to rest on his chest. They stared into each other's eyes for a while, shutting out the rest of the world as they each tried to find comfort in the fact that they were unharmed. Eventually he leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead before gathering her in her arms once more. Becker felt her let out a sigh of relief, and finally felt that she would be alright to speak again. "What happened, Jess?

Not moving from his embrace, she started to explain. "I don't even know where it came from. I was giving you guys the alternate directions when I looked up and saw it over the ADD. I was so shocked to see it that I must have disconnected our comm's without knowing it. It was looking right at me…"

"Thank goodness you're alright," Emily said, reaching a hand out to touch Jess' shoulder. Becker looked over to see that some of his men were loading the raptor onto a trolley, to transport it to the menagerie. He felt Jess smile softly into his chest in response to Emily's words, and waited for her to continue.

"It just kept looking at me, as if it was waiting for me to run. I know that its vision isn't based on movement, but I just couldn't move. When the internal alarm sounded, it was distracted enough for me to be able to dive under the desk for the EMD you put there after the future predators fiasco," she said, nudging Becker with her shoulder. "It jumped over the ADD, and I just started firing at it. I pushed it back far enough to get out from under the desk, and had gotten off a couple more shots before you guys got here." At this point she pulled back a bit from Becker's embrace, but still let him hold her close. Looking at him first and then at Emily, she went on. "I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't gotten here when you did," she said as she settled her cheek back over his steady heartbeat.

"I just have one question," Emily stated, causing both of her companions to look up at her. "Where the devil is Lester in all this?"

Jess chuckled. "Don't you remember? He has a family function this weekend so he left work fairly soon after your musical announcement."

Becker laughed with her. "I think he'd rather be taking on the raptor with Jess than where he is right now."

Emily grinned, then put her hand to the comm in her ear. "Copy that, Matt. We're all fine here." After a brief pause, she looked back at the couple standing in front of her. "They've closed up the anomaly. No sign of any creatures, but we're leaving some soldiers to patrol the area for a while to be sure."

Wondering why he hadn't heard this, Becker pulled one of his arms from Jess and put it to his ear to find his comm was missing. He looked back at Emily, who held it out to him. "You were a bit distracted and in a hurry." He threw her a smile as he felt Jess shake a bit with a giggle. "I'm going to go and see if I can find out why in the world a raptor was roaming around in the Ops room," she stated with a tinge of anger in her voice as she walked away.

"Come on, Warrior Woman," Becker said, teasingly. "Let's get you down to medical to get looked at."

"Why?" Jess inquired. He lowered his gaze and stared pointedly at her shoulder and arm. She glanced down and saw that the sleeve was torn and bloody. "Damn, it did get me," she whispered, and he felt his heart clench at the thought of her being slashed by the raptor. "It doesn't even hurt."

"That would be the adrenaline," he informed her as he guided her away from the ADD, still keeping an arm around her waist.

"Now, about those talents you mentioned earlier…" he trailed off, smiling at the sudden blush that rose to her face.


	3. Thank Goodness

A/N: Since the next few chapters are a bit shorter, not to mention the fact that they're already edited due to my being sick, I thought I'd get one of them out each day this weekend. For anyone disappointed at the promised lack of singing Becker, you might forgive me a bit once chapter 5 comes out on Sunday... :p Happy weekend!

************ Thank Goodness ************

"So when are the audition results going to be posted?" Abby asked Emily the following week in the canteen.

"They aren't," was the quick reply.

"How come?" asked Connor, as Jess and Matt found their way over.

"I don't want to spoil the surprise," Emily told them with a wink. "I'll be informing our performers of their parts individually."

"But how are you going to practise without anyone finding out who's who?" Jess asked as she sat next to Abby.

"Well, everyone performing in the show will know, but we're going to lock down the canteen whenever we have rehearsal. Lester even proposed putting a special code on the doors during rehearsal times, so that only performers could come in and out," Emily said, asking the silent question of Jess.

"That wouldn't be too hard for me to do," Jess said, smiling at her. "Just say when."

"Thank you."

"So Matt," Abby began in a 'you're-going-to-tell-me-even-if-you-don't-want-to ' voice, "why are you so opposed to this musical idea?"

The quiet conversation that Connor and Jess had started halted immediately, as all eyes shot to Matt. He glared daggers at Abby for bringing it up.

"I just think that we have more important things to worry about than a silly little musical," he replied quickly, missing the hurt look that fell on Emily's face. She lowered her hands to her lap and dropped her head so she couldn't meet any other eyes at the table.

"But don't you think that with everything we've been through lately, something a little lighter might be in order?" Jess offered, trying to diffuse the tension.

"Doing this isn't going to stop the anomalies from happening, Jess," Matt started before Connor cut him off.

"But it might be something nice to come back to and distract us from the chaos," he tried.

"Exactly! It's a distraction," Matt continued. "And we can't afford any distractions in this job!" He stood up from the table. "Why am I the only one who seems to get that?" he asked rhetorically as he stalked away.

The four remaining at the table stayed silent, but Abby looked up at his retreating form sadly as he left. He passed Becker on the way out of the canteen, who shot him a confused look as he did. Becker looked around the canteen, meeting gazes with Abby, who shrugged slightly. He nodded, and took off after Matt without a word.

"I'm sorry this has become such a bother," Emily whispered, drawing everyone's attention. "I just thought it'd be something fun to do as a group."

"You have nothing to apologize for," Jess insisted, moving around the table to sit next to Emily. "It's a great idea – even Lester said so!"

"She's right, Em," Connor added. "If Lester gets on board with any idea, it has to be a good one."

"He wouldn't waste his time and resources on it if he didn't think so," Abby put forth.

"I just don't understand why Matt's so angry about it," Emily sighed.

They sat in silence for a moment. "Have you talked to him about it, away from everyone else?" Jess asked.

"Whenever I try, he shuts right down. He'll either leave the room or start yelling."

"Then maybe you should just say how you feel, and leave it up to him."

"How I feel?"

"Tell him he's being a bloody idiot, and then walk away," Abby explained. "See what he does with that."

"And if it's really bad, you could always stay at my place for a while," Jess offered.

Emily smiled at each of them in turn. "I really am lucky to have friends such as you."

"Friends don't let friends deal with idiots in bad moods alone," Connor said, bringing chuckles to the table once more.

Meanwhile out in the hall, Becker caught up to Matt. "Everything ok?" he asked.

"Leave it, Becker, I'm fine."

"You don't look it."

"Since when are you the expert?" Matt was being harsh, but Becker was fully prepared for it.

"Don't worry, I'm not going soft on you," Becker countered, making sure his voice still had an edge to it despite his concern. "I just wanted to know if you wanted to go shoot out that anger at the range. I hear rage helps the aim."

"I thought that Lester was trying to deter us from using violence," Matt said sarcastically, but slowed his pace.

"Bugger that, I like my violence." Matt actually cracked a slight smile at this, and after stopping his brisk walk, he shrugged his shoulders and turned back towards the armoury and shooting range.

Twenty minutes and 10 rounds later, they were still going. Becker decided it was time to chance a comment.

"You know you're being a complete tool to her, right?" he asked, taking aim.

"Why am I the bad guy for wanting to do my job without distractions?" Matt asked, never pausing in his shooting.

"If that was the case, then why are you allowing Emily to still work with us? I'd think that was enough distraction as it is."

"You're one to talk," Matt retorted.

"True, but at least I'm being honest about that."

"At least Emily knows how I feel…" Matt trailed off.

Becker paused, lowering his gun slightly as the words of his friend hit a little too close to the vest. He opted to not reply, and took his aim once more.

Matt fired off another two shots before continuing. "It's been a right horrible month," he said unnecessarily. "I'm just still trying to figure out my next move."

"Because of what you saw that day in the hall?" Becker knew that he was the only one Matt had told about that, and he had made a point to not say anything to anyone about it.

"I thought that with Philip and New Dawn gone, I'd find a bit of peace. If it wasn't for that, I'd probably be fine with this."

"Can I ask why you haven't told Emily about what you saw?"

"She's got enough on her plate, trying to adapt to this time, and everything that we do."

"I think out of everyone here, she'd probably understand it the best."

"Then why'd I tell you?"

"Beats the hell out of me," Becker tossed back at him, smirking. Matt actually laughed out loud that this, and actually stopped firing.

After a short pause, he spoke. "You're a good friend, mate."

"Yeah, just don't let it get around. The last thing I want is for Connor to hear that." Chuckling, the guys went back to their guns, unaware of the figure watching them banter from the ADD, a sweet, secretive smile on her face.


	4. Popular

************ Popular ************

"Captain Becker!"

As he walked into Ops one week after his talk with Matt in the firing range, Becker felt himself turn at the sound of Emily calling his name.

"Are you still willing to help build the sets for the show?" she asked, not wasting any time once she made it to his side.

He appreciated her directness. "Completely. Just tell me when and where you need me, and what to do."

"Well, Connor's helping with the set design, but there are two things that we're going to have to figure out in the canteen." He looked at her, waiting for her to continue. "We need to create this person-sized bubble-like thing for one of the characters, and it has to be able to lift off the stage with someone in it. The other is that we're going to need a rig that can lift one person straight up into the air."

"I can definitely help with the single rig, but you may want to talk to the tech department about the other. They'd probably be able to come up with some sort of design first, and then I can help with the construction."

"That's a great idea!" She beamed at him. She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. He smiled at this sweet woman who had captured Matt's attention. "Would you be able to come to the canteen after your shift today? Connor should have the set basics sorted by then, and we could look at what's need for this."

"No problem," he replied, causing her to smile again. As she walked away, he turned back to his original destination: the ADD.

"Captain?" Emily's voice made him turn once more. "Thank you." Those two simple words were heavily weighted, and Becker knew that she wasn't just talking about his offer to help with the sets. Matt must have talked to her. He nodded to her, and she continued on her way as his eyes fell upon his own favourite distraction.

Jess was the picture of relaxation, despite being at work and in her version of business attire. She was leaning back in her oversized red chair, with her long legs crossed and a casual grin on her face as she looked at the screens in front of her. She wore a short green dress that reminded him of a pool table top, and had paired it with her usual ridiculously high heels (today's were a soft shade of purple). Her long auburn hair was swept up off her shoulders in a dark purple clip, and varying shades of purple jewelry completed her outfit. He tried to ignore the fact that his heart sped up a bit at the sight of her, but it was getting harder as each day went by.

He quietly approached her side, and slid a chocolate bar onto her desk next to her hand. She glanced down at the movement, and then raised her large blue eyes to meet his gaze. "Thank you."

"Two thank you's in less than a minute," Becker commented. "I'm on a roll today."

She loved that his sense of humour had been coming out more and more since she'd first met him. He'd been so sad and serious when she first came to work at the ARC, and she had made it a mission of sorts to try and lighten him up a bit. While she knew that it wasn't all her doing, she liked to think that she had gotten the ball rolling. "What do you mean?" she asked, her thoughts coming back to the conversation at hand.

"Emily," he replied. "I told her that I'd help build her sets."

Jess nodded. "Yeah, she's enlisted me too."

"You're going to help with that too?" he asked, trying to keep the surprise out of his voice.

She nodded again. "I was heavy into the drama programme at my school before I graduated. That and music and dance were my non-technological outlets. I had several hands in every production my school put on, even after I finished there. Set-building, lights and sound, stage managing and performing – they were how I got my stress out."

"You really are full of surprises, aren't you," Becker commented.

Feeling a bit bold, she shot him a saucy wink. "You have no idea." She could have sworn that she saw a flash of lust in his eyes at her comment, but it was gone before she could react.

"Jess!" Connor shouted as he ran into the room. Jess and Becker both spun to look at him.

"What's wrong?" they asked together, stopping Connor short.

He glanced between the two of them at their unison question. "Creepy." After a beat and a blush from Jess, he went on. "Anyway, wait until you see what I've come up with for the stage!"

"You can tell Becker too, Connor. We're both going to be working on building it."

"Fantastic! Thanks, Action-Man!"

"How's Abby doing with the costume ideas?" Jess asked, before Becker could comment.

"She's got loads! We're going to have to seriously narrow it down, but I know she's gonna make us look amazing!"

"You guys are both in the show as well?" Becker queried. When they nodded enthusiastically, he waited a second in the hopes that he'd get more details. Nothing, so he was forced to ask. "Who are you playing?"

"Action-Man, do you actually know the characters of this show?"

"I took my sister to see it a couple years ago. Don't remember too much about it though," he admitted. "It was pretty cool, for a musical." Connor and Jess looked at each other, realizing how high praise this was, coming from him. "So who's playing who?"

"Oh no, you're not getting that information out of us!" Connor declared, stepping away from the pair. "Emily would kill us, and I'd fancy making my stage debut before that happens." With that, Connor dashed off, leaving poor Jess to try and dodge Becker's question.

"Jessica…" he said in that slightly pleading tone that always got to her. She steeled herself inside, and looked up into those eyes that she constantly got lost in. "You wouldn't keep me in the dark about this, would you? How am I supposed to create these sets and special effects if I don't know who they're for?"

He was good, but she was determined to be better. She wouldn't let Emily's surprises slip for a handsome face, no matter how lovely a face it was. "Emily's enlisted me to help with the music. I'm not sure what my role with that will be yet," she stated simply.

"So you're playing in the band for it?"

"I don't know yet. Emily hasn't given me any details. She just asked if I would work with the band."

"What instrument do you play?"

Jess realized that he was venturing back into safe territory, so she relaxed a bit. "Violin."

"I had no idea you played," he said.

"I've played for fun since I was little."

"You're still little."

"Hardy-har-har. You know what I mean."

He thought on that for a minute. "Very cool."

Their quiet conversation was interrupted by the anomaly alarm. "No rest for the wicked," Jess commented dryly as the rest of the team hurried into the room.


	5. Dancing Through Life

A/N: Aaaaaaaaaand, cue swooning. ;)

************ Dancing Through Life ************

It took nearly two weeks for set construction to really get underway. Becker and Connor had argued for days about the original set, because the poor tech geek had no idea how elaborate he was making it. Becker had to sit him down and tell him, numerous times, exactly what was feasible for their canteen and what wasn't.

In the meantime, Jess and Emily had spent every non-anomaly waking moment talking about music and the set decoration. Their conversations had a tendency to go back and forth between the two topics, but the pair of them got along so well that it was easy to keep things light.

It was fairly late one Friday night, when Becker decided that he'd do a little solo work on the set. His soldiers, the maintenance staff and the tech crew were great to work with, but he worked best on his own. Since his entire team had gone home for the night (Abby and Connor had gone out to the pub, Matt was taking Emily to a movie, and Jess was now nowhere to be found), he figured he'd check on the things that had already been done, and then do a bit more before heading home.

As he approached the canteen, the soft strains of instrumental music reached his ears. Pushing the doors open quietly, he slipped in and was shocked at the sight before him.

Jess was there alone, in the large empty space that had been cleared for where the stage would eventually be built, and she was dressed differently than he'd ever seen her. She was in bare feet and a pair of soft blue tights ensconced her long, slender legs. An oversized yellow t-shirt flowed loosely over what he assumed was a tight pink tank top, and her hair was pulled up in a very high ponytail. She looked more comfortable than ever. But it wasn't what she was wearing that took his breath away – it was what she was doing.

She was dancing.

Jess moved slowly and gently to the music, her eyes closed. Becker wasn't sure what kind of dance if was (he assumed it was contemporary, the way it seemed to combine a bit of gymnastic-like stretches and jumps), but could tell how deep into the music she was. Her motions were fluid and graceful, almost completely opposite to what he was used to. There had been so many times that he had been needed to catch her when she tripped, but any traces of clumsiness had vanished. She was in her own little world, completely oblivious to everything except the music.

Becker was captivated. She looked so calm that he absurdly wondered if she was dancing in her sleep at one point. He felt that he should say something, so she was aware that she was no longer alone, but he didn't want to interrupt her peace. That, and he didn't want to stop watching her. So he waited, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, for her to finish her dance.

Jess spun on her heel and dropped into a split on the ground. She managed to roll herself out of it, and back up to her feet. Becker felt his eyebrows raising at the sensual way she moved, and quietly stepped closer to her. She turned and turned and eased her way over closer to him. As she danced, some of her movements started to look like they were meant to be done with another person.

So when she stretched her delicate hand out to the air in front of her, as if reaching for something, he reached out and took it in his own. Not stumbling or starting, or missing a beat at all, he gently spun her into his arms and started dancing with her. He'd been forced by his mother to take dance lessons when he was younger, and he knew that every lesson had stuck in his head. Their dance wasn't anything traditional, but he just went with the flow, spinning her and twisting with her.

Jess had been imagining so intently while she danced that she didn't even realize that the partner in her head was actually the one in front of her. She let her dream dance partner guide her around the floor, and felt a tear slip out of her eye. It all felt so real…

The music came to an end, and she felt her moves stop slowly. Her dream partner had guided her into a very deep dip as the music came to a close, and then brought her up very slowly. As she completely regained her footing, she opened her eyes and found herself gazing up into a pair of warm hazel ones. The next piece came on over the speakers, but neither of them noticed – they were too focused on each other.

Becker couldn't get over how much shorter than him she was. Normally she rose to his shoulders, if not a bit higher, but she was currently as tall as the centre of his chest. Her cheeks bore a healthy flush from her dancing. He found looking into her eyes completely eased all of the heaviness from his heart, almost as if it had never been there in the first place.

Jess, on the other hand, was also surprisingly calm under the circumstances. When she first opened her eyes and realized that the Becker she had been dancing with in her mind was actually real, her heart started to pound. She'd thought they'd all gone home and she had the canteen to herself. But the way that he was looking at her…the rest of the world just slipped away and she felt unbelievably peaceful. It just seemed so natural to be wrapped in his arms like this.

"I didn't know you could dance like that," Becker whispered, his face only inches from hers. It would only take the tiniest movement forward…

"I could say the same for you," she countered with a soft smile. His own lips quirked upwards at her words, drawing her eyes to his mouth.

"My mum had me take dance lessons for several years," he admitted. "I actually really enjoyed them, and they helped a lot when it came to maneuvering in the army."

She nodded slightly, and felt the need to offer some personal information in return. "When my father left, I was devastated and needed something to help me vent. So I enrolled in a few dance classes, and got hooked. It's actually the only good thing that ever came out of the relationship I had with him," she confessed, dropping her gaze to look at her bare feet complete with bright green varnish on her toes.

He brought one of his hands to her chin, and raised it so that she was looking at him again. At first he said nothing, but simply studied the sadness in her eyes. He hated to see her sad like this. "You dance beautifully," he whispered to her, and felt warmth course through him when she smiled brightly at him.

"So why are you here so late?" she inquired softly. "I thought everyone had gone home earlier."

"I thought I'd go over what had been done on the set so far, since it was quiet and distraction-free," he told her. "But that's apparently not true."

She giggled lowly as she lowered her eyes again. "Sorry about that."

He waited until she looked at him again. "You can distract me like that anytime." Her smile got even wider at that.

"Did you want some help with checking the sets?" she offered. "Since I am already here…"

"Love it," he said as they walked, still holding hands and each smiling shyly, over to the set pieces in the corner of the canteen.


	6. What is this Feeling?

I can't believe it's only Tuesday! This week is dragging already! I just want it to be Halloween already (Best. Holiday. Ever.). In the meantime, enjoy a nice, considerably longer, chapter in which we discover a couple casting choices and see our favourite scientist meddle a bit...

************ What is This Feeling? ************

"Watch out!"

Jess spun on the spot to see a tall piece of the backdrop heading towards one of the tech crew. He dropped and covered his head as Becker jumped in the way and stopped the momentum of the board before it could fall too far. Letting out a sigh of relief, Jess watched as he pushed it back upright and then checked the tech to see if he was ok.

"Nice catch, Action-Man," Connor announced. In return, he received a mock glare from his friend.

"Well I've had lots of practice rescuing you, so it had to come in handy sometime," Becker replied, causing Connor's ears to turn red.

Jess giggled softly, and returned to the task at hand: attaching the pieces of backdrop together with hinges so they could be easily set up and stored.

"Jess!" She looked up to see Abby standing at the door of the canteen. "Can I borrow you for a few minutes?" Nodding, she rose and headed for her friend, unaware of the pair of eyes that watched her as she left. Abby noticed them though, and smiled to herself.

"What's up?" Jess asked as she and Abby headed for one of the labs.

"I need you to try on your costumes, so we can check the fit." Abby had proven to be an amazing seamstress, and had created most of the costumes out of pieces that the performers already owned. Jess' outfits, however, had needed special treatment, and had been constructed by the blonde's own hands.

"How are the fittings going, anyway?"

"Everything's coming along great. Emily's just getting into her last dress now, and then it's just you left." Abby smiled proudly. "As long as I can focus on them for the next few days, they'll be ready to go by the end of the week."

"Wow, way to go, Abs!"

"Thank you," Abby said as they walked into the lab. Both of them stopped short at the sight in front of them.

Emily stood in front of the portable mirror that had been brought in, a gentle smile on her face. She was a vision in silver, the gown hugging her curves and flowing out like a ball gown at her hips. Layers of sparkly fabric glittered in the light of the room as she adjusted the neckline.

"Wow!" Emily turned at the sound of the two voices.

"The neck is a bit lower than I expected," she confessed, trying to pull it up a bit higher so she didn't feel so exposed.

"It's supposed to be a little dramatic, so stop fussing," Abby ordered as she darted to her side.

"Abby, it's perfect," Jess breathed. "You seriously can't do anything more with that."

Abby beamed as she looked over her sewing job. She checked Emily's seams, the dress length and everything else imaginable. "It does fit you beautifully," she told the brunette in front of her. "Once you've got that wig on, you'll be almost unrecognizable."

"Is that a good thing?" Emily asked, suddenly a bit worried.

"Oh yeah," Jess answered before Abby could. "You ARE Glinda."

Emily's smile returned, and Abby turned to Jess to shoo her behind a screen to try her own dresses. Jess had four to try on, and decided to start with the most dramatic – her last one. She quickly pulled off her less-than-normal work clothes (because of the set construction work that day, she was in a pair of Bermuda shorts and ballet flats rather than her usual skirt and heels) and grabbed the dress.

"So Jess," Abby began. Jess nearly groaned, for she knew exactly where this was going by the sly tone of Abby's voice. "How are things going with you and our dear head of security?"

Jess did groan at this point. "Things are fine," she answered as she slipped into her dress.

"Just fine?" Abby and Emily asked in unison.

"Yes, fine!"

"Rumour has it that the pair of you had a lovely, quiet night here at the ARC on Friday," Emily put out there.

Jess stumbled on her own feet as she zipped up the dress. She poked her hear out from behind the screen and stared open-mouthed. "How did you…?"

"Please dear, you know that Matt likes to check the daily video footage for when he's off-shift. He was sitting in his office looking at the canteen video when I went to talk to him, and he showed me," Emily explained. Jess' cheeks burned brightly. "You really make a striking pair," Emily continued, and Jess turned even redder.

"Look, we've been over this," she started as she went back behind the screen to finish fastening her dress. "Becker and I are just friends. That's not changing."

"You're saying that you don't want it to anymore?" Abby asked, baiting her. When Jess didn't reply, she smiled. "That's what I thought."

"It doesn't matter what I want, it is what it is," Jess stated, stepping out into the open. Abby looked up at her and her jaw hit the floor.

"Ohmigod, Jess!"

"What?" Jess asked, panicked. "Is it that bad?"

Emily had looked over at them and her eyes had widened to the point of looking comical. "Bad?!" she asked. "Exactly the opposite! Jess, it's stunning!" Abby led Jess over to the mirror, where Jess could really see it.

"Oh," Jess uttered, gazing at the dress. It was made of a dark, shiny, hunter green fabric, with glittering black lace overlay covering it. The corset-style bodice was fitted tight and showed off Jess' figure wonderfully. The skirt wasn't as large as Emily's, but the extra fabric made it seem like a gown (complete with a small train). The fact that it was a turtle-neck style didn't detract from the fact that Jess was a knock-out in it.

"It's so out of character for you," Abby said, checking the dress as she had with Emily's. "I'm not used to seeing you in something so dark. You look positively Becker-ish," she finished cheekily.

"I own a few little black dresses," Jess argued.

"But how often do you wear them?" Emily asked, stepping up next to Jess so they could look at themselves in the mirror.

"Good point," Jess said, running her hands along the fabric of the dress.

"Turn around," Abby commanded. The two girls did so, and Abby used her phone to snap a picture of them. "This is going to be so cool," she stated as they all started to laugh.

Four of Jess' costumes, two of Abby's, and nearly an hour later, the three of them returned to the canteen in their normal clothes, smiling and chatting as they did. But all of their talking stopped silent as they stepped into the canteen.

It must have been 100 degrees in the room. Immediately upon entering, the girls wanted to start shedding layers of clothing. "What happened?" Abby asked a passing tech who was down to a t-shirt and shorts.

"Air conditioning system shorted out about half an hour ago," he said, moving to get back to work.

"Why didn't we feel it in the lab?" Emily asked.

"Separate cooling system," Jess replied. "We keep the lab areas on a separate circuit because of the chemicals."

"Connor! Captain!" Emily shouted, heading towards the mess of a set. Abby and Jess looked in the direction of her path, and stopped cold.

The two men in question were raising one of the flats, and the girls could hear someone on the other side, attaching them together. They had stripped down so that they were completely shirtless, unlike some of the other men in the room who were in t-shirts and tanks. From where they stood, the girls could see how hard they were working in the heat, as the sweat glistened on their backs. Jess swallowed hard as Abby cursed under her breath.

Emily seemed completely unfazed as she addressed them quietly, asking about what had happened, they assumed. They were shocked, however, when Matt appeared from behind the flat, dressed as his comrades were. They heard Emily stumble over her words when she saw him, and they hurried over to find out what was going on.

"Matt, what are you doing here?" Abby asked. Jess kept quiet, since she wasn't supposed to know about the chat Becker had with him a few weeks prior.

"Emily and I talked about this whole thing, and while I haven't completely changed the way I feel, I know how much this means to her. So I'm willing to help out." Emily beamed at him through her red cheeks, and Matt winked at her before nodding at Becker.

"Ok, so what can we do?" Jess asked, pulling off the red cardigan she'd been wearing to reveal a pale yellow striped tank top underneath. She turned away to put the sweater on a nearby table, and Emily and Connor both watched as Becker's eyes bore into her back with the intensity of his stare. He got himself in check just as she turned back around.

"Well, we obviously can't paint because of the heat," Becker began, looking anywhere other than at Jess. "But let's finish getting the flats sorted first."

"Actually, Action-Man, I was wondering if you and I could take a look at that single-person rig. I want to see what kinds of changes we have to make." Becker nodded at Connor's request, and then looked at Matt to confirm that he would keep working on the flats. Emily got called away by the techs working on sound for the show, leaving Matt, Jess and Abby to work on the flats.

Everything was going smoothly for a bit, and Jess felt like she was actually able to concentrate on what she was doing with Becker on the other side of the room. She, Abby and Matt had checked all of the finished flats and everything was in great shape. They were about to start on some of the additional large props, when…

"Jess!" She turned to see Connor waving her over to where he was standing with Becker and something hanging from the ceiling. "Come here! We need your help for a minute!" Squaring her shoulders, she walked over to the two while Abby and Matt watched with matching sly smiles.

"How can I help?" Jess asked as she arrived at their sides, trying her best not to stare at Becker and his lack of shirt.

"You're about the size of the person we need to lift in this thing, so we were wondering if you'd be so kind as to help us test it out?"

She was stuck. She couldn't say no to this. "Sure?" she replied, sounding more like a question than anything else.

"Fantastic!" Connor answered and grabbed at her arm.

"Wait," Becker said. "If we're going to test this, I don't want to take any chances." With that, he called over a few of his fellow soldiers, said a few quiet words, and sent them on their way. Jess and Connor looked at him quizzically, but he smiled. "You'll see in a minute," he promised.

Connor started at him, puzzled, for a few seconds more, and then shook it off as he brought Jess over to the ceiling attachment. "Ok, so basically, round the midpoint of the show, one of the characters has to rise up into the air for part of a song – "

"I've seen 'Wicked', Connor. I remember this part," Jess told him, smiling.

"Right, well, anyway, we want to make sure that this rig can do that. So what we're going to do is strap you in, raise you up, and see how it works and fits."

"I don't have to sing, do I?" she asked dryly, bringing forth a chuckle from the man she was trying so hard not to look at.

"No, just speak a fair bit and tell us if there's any trouble with it."

Jess looked at the rig suspiciously. "Are you sure it'll hold me? Abby's smaller than I am…"

"You are just about as close to the performer's size as we can get. We need to know this will work with someone your size."

"You'll be perfectly safe up there," Becker assured her. She turned and looked at him for the first time since the idea had been put out there.

"How can you be sure if you've never tested it?" she asked quietly, starting to get lost in his eyes.

"Because I wouldn't let you go up there without being sure," he replied, his eyes only on her. "Besides, I'm taking the necessary safety steps." She came out of her daze and looked at him quizzically. He turned around and she saw the soldiers he'd previously sent away returning. They were carrying large, cushioned mats between them. Becker pointed to where they were to go and turned back to her. Once you're strapped in, then we'll raise you over these mats. If something goes wrong and you fall, these will keep you from getting hurt." Jess was touched that he was taking care of her in such a way.

"That is a brilliant idea, mate," Connor admitted, looking slightly stunned that he hadn't thought of it.

"Well it is my job to keep everyone safe," Becker told him. Jess felt her heart sink a bit – of course, it was just his job.

Shaking herself out of her disappointment, she turned to the rig. "Ok, so what do I do?"

Connor snapped back into action. "Ok, we're going to try this once slowly to make sure it works, and then we're going to try it a few times faster."

"Why faster?" Becker asked, stepping out of the way so Jess could approach the rig.

"Because we'll have less than ten seconds to get the performer offstage, into this rig and back out for this part of the song," was Connor's rapid-fire answer.

"No pressure then," Jess whispered to Becker, earning a laugh from him. "So how does it work?" she asked them, examining the rig up close.

"Very simple," Connor started to explain, but Jess stopped paying attention about 3 words in. Becker had moved to stand behind her and reached in front to pull the rig around her slim waist. She felt herself gasp as his warm skin grazed hers, and tried miserably to contain the shiver it elicited. He fastened the belt of the rig at the small of her back, and then dropped to his knees at her side to check and make sure it was secure. She had to fight not to slide her eyes shut at the feel of his strong hands moving all around her waist. At one point, his fingers and thigh grazed her leg and she focused on not collapsing into a puddle at the contact.

"Does that make sense?" Connor asked with a grin, knowing full well that she had stopped listening long ago. From where they were standing, Matt and Abby were elbowing each other and trying not to laugh out loud.

"Yes," Jess squeaked out as calmly as she could. She moved on shaky legs to stand directly under the rig's ceiling attachment, as Becker slowly got to his feet, schooling his face into hiding how much of an effect the proximity of Jess' body had on him. When he'd brushed her leg, it had taken everything in him to not run his fingers along the smooth expanse of skin her shorts revealed.

As Jess moved, Becker's soldiers pushed the mats into position, and two of them (the 'hired muscle' for the stage crew) moved over to where the pulley was for the rig. Jess stood calmly and waited.

Suddenly, she was hoisted slowly into the air, her legs dangling loosely below her. When she made it to the right height, the soldiers marked the rope with glow-in-the-dark tape, and anchored the pulley so that they didn't have to hold it. Just incase something went wrong, though, they stayed right at their post, knowing that their Captain would have their heads if anything happened to the young woman currently floating in midair.

"How you doin', Jess?" Connor asked up to her.

"This feels so strange," she replied, a smile on her face as she looked out at the canteen.

"Can you breathe alright in that thing?" he asked again.

"Fine! It's tight enough that I don't feel like I'm going to fall out, but it's loose enough for me to breathe normally."

Connor kept her talking with him as the soldiers raised her up and down a few times to check the stability of the pulley and rig. By the time Jess was being lowered back onto solid ground, the constant up-and-down motion had made her a bit dizzy. As her feet hit the floor, she felt her knees give out.

Jess closed her eyes and braced herself for the impact with the ground, but it never came. Instead, a warm pair of arms caught her around the waist and steadied her. She opened her eyes to find herself looking straight at Becker's bare chest. Stunned for a second, she managed to keep her wits about her enough to not reach out and run her fingers along his skin. She finally regained her senses and looked up into his face, giving him a grateful smile as he helped her stand straight.

"That was perfect," Connor stated happily, for more than just his technical success. "Do you mind if we test it out a bit faster now?" he asked.

"Can you just give me a minute first?" she requested. "I just want to catch my breath a bit first."

"I thought you said you could breathe fine when you were up there…"

She was caught, but she was still quick. "I was, but sending me up and down a few times threw me for a bit of a loop," she admitted, only half-lying.

He nodded in understanding. "Yeah, sure. Take a few minutes and we'll try it again, yeah?"

"Sure," she answered. Becker, who had been in a trance of his own, shook himself free and helped her get out of the rig. Smiling in thanks at him again, she then headed for the door to the hallway. She somehow managed to walk to the kitchen, get herself some water, and then move into the lab where Abby had done her costume fitting not that long ago. Once inside, she leaned against the closed door, and let out a long, deep sigh as she sank to the ground.

Sitting with her knees against her chest, she counted to 100 in her head to calm her speeding heart. As she gulped down her water, she realized once again (for the second time in less than a week) how natural it had felt to be as close to Becker as she had just been. She'd never felt safer. But she then reminded herself that the security of all ARC employees was his top priority, so it made sense for him to catch her the way he had, and to check the rig so closely. He was just doing his job…

After hiding in the lab for another five minutes, she had steeled herself enough to go back to the canteen. There, she submitted herself to 5 more fast-paced tests of the rig. Connor's instructions had been for her to run from centre stage (directly under the rig) to the side where she'd be strapped in quickly, and then, over the course of another 10 seconds, casually make her way back to the same spot before being lifted gracefully into the air.

With all this happening with Connor and the soldiers, Jess only briefly noticed that Becker had returned to help Matt and Abby with the flats. This also meant that she missed the knowing glances Matt and Abby shared with each other, as well as the fairly well-concealed longing looks Becker kept shooting in her direction.


	7. Sentimental Man

A/N: I'm so sorry that this is just coming out now, but this week has been absolutely insane! I haven't gotten home before 11pm any night this week, and it's all been work-related. I'll be putting out the last pre-show chapter tomorrow, but here's one of the lead-in's. :) Hope everyone had a great Halloween! What did you all dress up as? :D

************ Sentimental Man ************

Two days after the air conditioner had broken down (and several angry phone calls by an overheated Lester to get it fixed), everything was back to normal at the ARC. Business continued as usual, with one or two anomalies per day, but around their actual work, the vast majority of the ARC staff was working hard on the show. Emily had set it up so well that everyone involved knew only as much as was needed. Those who had built the sets had no idea what was being done with them, and were only brought back in if there was a problem. That meant that Matt and Becker had been relegated back to their normal duties, while Abby, Connor and Jess were still pulled out of their respective areas on a regular basis for practice or other show-related matters. Even Lester was being called in more than his top two soldiers. But no matter what they were doing, when that anomaly bell sounded, everyone bolted for their necessary positions.

Not that they minded at all. It was nice to be able to focus on their work, and they tried not to get too annoyed when their charges were taken away by Emily for whatever reason. Lester had decided on their skeleton crew for while the show was happening, and was working with them and Emily on how they could watch the show unless they were absolutely needed. With Jess' help, they had gotten pagers set up so that when the portable ADD picked up an anomaly, they'd be paged (vibrate only) and easily slip out the back. Becker had helped set up another weapons closet between the canteen and Ops, so that they would have easy, on-the-way access to the EMD's if they needed to leave in a hurry. It really was a brilliant plan, and the only way the show would be interrupted would be if the anomaly created an incursion that was bigger than expected.

In the week leading up to the show, Becker had heard singing coming from some of the labs every afternoon. He had figured out that both Abby and Connor were singing in the show with Emily, but that was all he could tell from the singing itself.

One afternoon, he had passed by the canteen one day to see Jess in there and working with the musicians in their 'band'. Becker had been floored at the amount of instrumentalists they had working at the ARC. From what he could hear through the thick doors as he approached, they were pretty good. It was initially only a quick glance as one of the lab techs was walking out the door, but Becker managed to slip his toe in the way before the door shut. He watched for a minute as Jess grinned her way through their performance. He could see her mouth moving at times, singing along with the music, but couldn't tell what she was singing or what she sounded like. But he focused on how happy she looked there with them, and wished that he could be the one to do something to get that kind of look out of her.

Sure, she graced him with her brilliant smile every time he brought her chocolate, but she always seemed like she was holding something back. Each day he managed to keep from blurting out something that would completely give away how he felt, but it was getting harder as time passed. He'd felt the major shift in his feelings during the beetle incident two months prior, and had wanted to jump for joy when she actually pulled through it. It had been then when he had fully realized how much he needed her around to be happy. She had punched her way through the tough-soldier shield he'd raised around himself, and settled herself somewhere close to his heart. Now he just needed to find the nerve to tell her that…

Later that day, Becker was still trying to pull himself from his thoughts of Jess as he passed the 'rehearsal lab'. He heard Emily singing sweetly through the thick door, but stopped short when he heard a second voice. He couldn't make out the words, but the melody was fairly easy to pick up. It was a voice he hadn't heard before, and it shocked him with its clarity and tone. It was, simply put, angelic. Becker backtracked a bit to try and peek through the window to see who it was. Unfortunately for him, the singer had her back to him, and her hair was completely obscured by the black witch's hat that she wore. After watching for a few minutes, he accepted the fact that this woman wasn't going to turn around, and moved a little ways away from the door. He listened to her and Emily singing together for a few minutes more, and then continued on his way back to the armoury.

Inside the lab he had just passed, Emily smiled brightly at her singing companion. Emily had known from the minute she'd first opened her mouth to audition that she was the perfect choice for the lead. There was so much energy and emotion in her voice, and the Victorian found herself getting swept into the hypnotic voice. They finished their duet, and both grinned as the last note faded out. "Perfect!" Emily exclaimed happily.

"Really?"

"It was beautiful," she assured her. "Now we have to figure out how we're going to get everyone rehearsing together without running into spies…"

Two days later, the canteen was completely shut down for the afternoon as everyone involved with the show began practicing as a whole company. Everyone not involved went about their normal activities, but Jess had rigged up the canteen doors so that the only people who had access were those actually in the show.

Some of the soldiers grumbled about the fact that they couldn't get their usual afternoon coffee as a result, but most of their complaints were good-natured. In truth, everyone was starting to get excited about the show. It was the first time that anything like this had happened at the ARC, so everyone wanted to know how it would turn out.

Lester smiled as he watched the stage production rehearse. Lady Merchant's idea had been a far-out one, but he was very glad that he'd supported it. It seemed to only be bringing his staff closer as they worked in another capacity with each other.

The show couldn't come fast enough.


	8. Wonderful

************ Wonderful ************

With one week to go before the show, tensions started to run high for the ARC employees. Everyone was getting short-tempered due to the lack of sleep coupled with the added responsibilities. Those who were in the show had lines to memorize, songs to practice and choreography to master, while those who would be filling the audience were trying to help their comrades by doing extra work.

Poor Jess seemed to have the worst of it. Anytime anything went wrong, everyone seemed to blame her. The funniest part, though, was that she had absolutely nothing to do with some of it. Trying to blame an EMD malfunction on the one person who stayed as far away from them as possible was laughable, yet one of Becker's soldiers actually tried to pull it off one day – only for the central team of Abby, Connor, Matt, Emily and Jess to stand up to him. He would have been fine if his Captain hadn't been standing behind him when Jess had started to cry angry tears as she shouted at him. The poor soldier had had a rough go ever since…

Becker was walking towards the canteen, his left arm across his chest and trying to work out a kink in his right shoulder to no avail. They had two days to go before showtime, and he had spent most of his post-meeting mornings that week putting the finishing touches on the stage and set. Emily had been ecstatic about the look, and had informed him that the decorating team would be there after work today to cover the roughness of it all. So he was going to check on their progress, and ensure that everything was still in working order.

He gently pushed at the canteen door, and found that it was unlocked. He wasn't a fan of the fact that he was locked out of part of the facility for the better part of his shift, but he wouldn't complain.

Half of the lights were on inside, so it was fairly quiet and cool when he entered. Looking over at the stage, he smiled at his handiwork as he saw a familiar figure in bare feet and a short orange skirt draping fabric from one of the upper corners of the set outline. "Having fun?" he asked as he leaned against the doorframe, amused.

Jess turned from her task and shot him a glowing smile. "Actually, I am. I'm right in my element."

"Where's the rest of the decorating team?"

"You're looking at it."

"What?" He dropped his casual stance and started walking towards her. "Emily told me that she had a bunch of people doing it."

"If she did, she never told me," Jess said gently. "It's ok though, I'm doing fine on my own."

"Says the one teetering precariously on the ladder," he added under his breath.

"What was that?"

"I asked if you wanted me to spot the ladder for you," he fibbed.

She stood up a little straighter and looked at him teasingly. "Are you implying that I can't do this by myself?"

He laughed out loud. "Hardly. I'm trying to keep my favourite klutz from breaking her neck two days before the performance."

She shot him a mock-indignant look, and placed a hand on her hip. Climbing easily down the ladder, she waltzed over to where he was standing and poked him repeatedly in the chest. "You take that back, Mr. Captain-of-the-guard. I am no klutz!"

He laughed again at her actions, and it only made her poke him faster and harder. After a few dozen pokes, he dodged out of her way and tried to move a bit of a distance away. She was persistent though, and followed him about the room, giggling as she attempted to continue poking him. Just as he reached the server counter, and without warning, he spun to face her and shot his hand out to grab her outstretched wrist. She wasn't about to be beaten, so she tried with her other hand, but he quickly grabbed that too. He pulled her wrists towards him (not so hard that it hurt, but hard enough) and sent her off-balance enough that she found herself flush against his chest.

They both froze, their eyes on the others'. Jess could feel her heart pounding at the contact, and was sure that he could feel it too. Becker gazed down at the small girl in front of him, and felt his walls crumbling around him. He couldn't get over how right it felt to hold her close in this way. Without realizing it, one of his hands released her wrist, and reached up to brush away a few stray locks that had fallen across her face in their little chase.

If it was possible, Jess' heart sped up. She'd been this close to him several times in the last few months, but something about this time felt different. She held very still, not wanting to ruin this moment, but her mind couldn't help conjuring up an image of him cupping her cheek and then leaning down to press a soft kiss on her lips.

She was about to shake herself out of her fantasy and pull away from him, when she felt his palm caress her cheek. Her lips parted just a bit, but it was enough to bring is darkened gaze to them briefly. The hand that he had released had gently settled itself on his chest, and she couldn't believe what she felt: his heart was beating just as wildly as her own.

Becker stared at her, wordlessly for a few seconds more, and then swooped in quickly to capture Jess' mouth in a lingering kiss. He pulled back for just a second – enough to give her the chance to pull away if she so desired – before diving in for a deeper kiss.

Jess was in heaven. At the first touch of his lips to hers, she'd been so shocked she couldn't move. When he pulled back, she could have whimpered at the loss of contact, but before she could do or say anything, his lips were kissing her again. She kissed him back, putting everything she felt into it. She pulled her still-confined wrist out of his grasp, and slid that hand up his chest and over his shoulder to the nape of his neck. She felt his now free hand slip around her waist and crush her even closer to him. The sudden shift in positions caused her to gasp, and he wasted no time in deepening the kiss even further.

They couldn't get close enough. The hand that had been on her cheek was now lost in the mass of auburn hair, and the hand that had been on this chest had latched up with its partner around the back of his neck. Becker leaned back against the counter, pulling Jess with him and causing her to raise herself onto her tiptoes. Kissing her was simply glorious. The soft sighs that left her mouth told him that she was ok with this, and that spurred him on. He'd never tasted anything sweeter than her, and knew that he was a goner. Becker ran his hands up and down Jess' back as he held her tight, smirking to himself as he felt shivers course through her body at his touch. He teasingly stroked along the bare strip of skin on her back that was exposed between her skirt and shirt, and she arched further into him. In return, Jess slipped her hands just inside the collar of his black t-shirt, and gently raked her fingernails over the skin she found there. He hissed in response and the intensity of their kiss increased.

After what felt like hours (but was really only about 10 minutes), their kisses eventually slowed as they both started to come back to themselves. Finally their lips parted, but they stayed with their arms wrapped around each other, neither wanting to break away just yet. They kept their gazes locked as they both caught their breath. Jess' lips were swollen and a beautiful blush adorned her cheeks. Becker's lips were just as swollen, and his eyes were half-closed, as if trying to compose himself.

"I've wanted to do that for so long," he whispered to her.

"Then what stopped you?" she breathed back.

He paused for a second, and Jess could practically hear the thoughts colliding in his head. Deciding to nip them in the bud, she stretched up and kissed him gently once more. Pulling back, she opened her eyes to see him again. "It's ok. It doesn't matter now."

"There are so many reasons why we shouldn't be doing this," he told her softly. She forced herself to stay calm, in the hopes that he wouldn't pull away from her now. "But I don't care about any of them right now."

She beamed, and slowly pulled out of his embrace. "Come on," she said, pulling him towards the stage.

"What?"

"You're going to help me finish decorating," she said, feeling bold and happy. "And then we're going to go out for dinner together before you take me home, making sure to give me a proper kiss goodnight."

"Just one?" he joked.

She tilted her head and winked at him. "We'll see how well you play your cards on that one." He let out a full-blown laugh, and followed her to the set. They chatted amiably as they worked, putting up fabric drapings and covering all of the unpainted wood. He steadied her on the ladder, and sometimes even lifted her into his arms to help her down. She felt giddy and giggly as they kidded around.

He'd never been happier.


	9. No Good Deed

A/N: I really must say how pleased I am that everyone seems to like this silly, not-so-little story of mine. I'm very thankful that you've all given it a chance, despite the fact that there's no way it would have ever happened on our lovely show. :p

I know I said that the last chapter would be the final one before the show, but since this is technically partly pre-show prep, it doesn't really count. The music shall begin in the next installment. ;)

************ No Good Deed ************

The day of the show arrived, and everyone involved was a wreck. Tension in the ARC was palpable as nerves ran the day. Lester had given anyone involved with the show shortened shifts, but nobody wanted to go home and wait for time to pass. If they stopped working at all, they either had a nap in the break room or hung out with their friends in the canteen.

Abby and Connor were fighting practically on the hour, and about even sillier things than usual. Matt was doing everything he could to keep Emily calm, including bringing her tea every time he saw her. And every single person in the ARC was doing anything possible to keep out of Lester's way. No one outside of the company knew what he had to do with the show, but his temper was absolutely dangerous.

The calmest of the group was Jess, which shocked them all. She was worried about the performance, but was happier than she'd ever been. She and Becker had spent a fair bit of time together outside of work over the last couple days, under the pretense of staying late at work so that she'd have nothing to worry about on the day of the show. And while she hadn't been dishonest (she actually HAD stayed late to work, and DID have everything done ahead of time), she had bent the truth a bit about exactly how late she had stayed at work, and what she'd done afterward.

Jess had been terrified when she came to work the day before. She'd worried that Becker would withdraw from her after their amazing night decorating the canteen. That kiss had been at the forefront of her mind all night, and she had very much wanted another. To her great relief, he acted completely normal with her out in the open, even lingering near her chair a bit longer than usual and subtly touching her arm, shoulder, waist, etc, whenever he could. Then, when he'd caught her alone in the break room later that morning, he'd kissed her with just as much passion as he had the previous night, leaving her completely breathless and wanting more. She knew right then that they'd be fine.

He was currently walking towards her from the doorway. She had her back to him, but could tell his footsteps just from their sound. A chocolate bar slid onto the desk next to her, and she smiled demurely at him in thanks. "You ok?" Becker asked quietly.

"I'm great," she replied truthfully.

"Nervous?"

"A bit, but I can handle it."

"That I can believe." He smiled at her, and gave her shoulder a squeeze. "See you later," he said as he headed towards the arms closet. She smiled secretively to herself, and went back to work. She couldn't wait for the show. Becker had tried to pry some information out of her at his place the night before, but knowing that she wanted him to be surprised the way Emily did, he didn't press too hard when she refused to answer.

Jess breezed through the day's work, which made Abby even angrier. Jess was a major driving factor in this show: why was she so bloody calm? She actually voiced her question after a particularly violent anomaly incursion.

"I don't know why I'm not nervous, I'm just…not," was Jess' calm reply. Abby, meanwhile, had just taken out her nerves and anger on a 'poor' allosaurus that had been unfortunate enough to come through the latest anomaly. Becker had come back shaking his head and talking about never pissing Abby off again.

"Bollocks!" Abby shouted, causing everyone in Ops to turn in their direction.

"Abby…" Jess started.

"No! You don't get to brush me off! Something else is going on! There is no way that the Jess I know would be this relaxed today!"

"Abby, please…" Jess whispered, trying to keep herself together.

"What the hell is it, Jess? Pop a couple valium? Buy another 6 pairs of shoes? Or was it – "

"Miss Maitland!" Lester's voice boomed through the room, causing everyone to whirl the other way, including the arguing girls. "That is quite enough! My office, now!"

Abby grumbled the entire way up to his office. Lester glared at her until she entered, then turned to look at Jess. He then flicked his eyes in the direction of the break room. She nodded, shot him a grateful smile, and removed her earpiece. She motioned for another tech to take over, and hurried away from the hub.

Becker looked up from his gun as Jess entered the arms closet with a bang of the door. Seeing the distress on her face, he was at her side in less than two seconds. "What is it?"

She said nothing, but just buried her face in his chest and let him wrap his arms around her. He stroked her back and whispered softly to her. She focused on him to ease her mind: his warmth, his touch, his scent. She breathed slowly and steadily as he brushed the hair away from her face. He didn't push her to say anything; just let her relax in his arms as he kissed the top of her head.

After a few minutes of quiet, she felt calm enough to pull away. He looked deeply into her eyes, and read for himself that she was really ok now. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Abby's just frustrated that she's more nervous than me." That simple explanation helped him put 2 and 2 together and come up with what had happened. He nodded silently, and leaned forward to kiss her forehead. She pecked him softly on the lips. "Thank you."

"I didn't do anything."

"Yes, you did." She smiled as she stroked his cheek before leaving quietly. He stared at the door for a moment after she'd gone, not fully understanding what had just happened. But as long as Jess was ok, that's all that mattered.

When Jess got back to the ADD, Abby was still in with Lester. Jess immediately averted her eyes and focused on the screens in front of her. She got straight down to work, finishing the online files about the latest anomaly as best she could. Once Matt, Becker and Abby submitted their reports, she could finish it. Twenty minutes later, she chanced a glance back at the office behind her to find it empty.

"She went for a walk." Jess whirled around again to see Lester standing by her side. "Miss Maitland needed to find an outlet for her anger that wasn't a person. Or an allosaurus for that matter."

Jess couldn't help but giggle at that. "You know it's just because she's stressed about later today, right?"

"I do, but I will not allow her to abuse my staff in any way. The reason for it is irrelevant." She nodded, and he went on his way.

Three hours later, Jess still hadn't seen Abby. She'd texted both Becker and Connor to see if they'd heard from her, but there had been nothing from the blonde since her explosion. Jess knew that there was only one hour left before they had to start getting ready for the show, so she called over her back-up again, and headed for the door. She was determined to find her friend and figure this out.

She got as far as the carpark and stopped short. Abby was sitting in Becker's car, tears streaming down her face. Jess walked over, opened the passenger door and climbed in. They sat in silence together for a few minutes, but Jess would wait as long as it took.

"I'm sorry," Abby eventually said. "You didn't deserve that." Jess turned to look at her, but Abby still stared straight ahead.

"You're stressed," Jess stated simply. "It's understandable, given the circumstances."

"It's not just the show," Abby admitted. Jess looked at her curiously, and waited again. Abby finally returned her gaze. "I'm off my rocker lately."

"Abby, is everything ok?"

"It is. It really is, but it's just a lot to deal with at the moment." Jess nodded in understanding, thoughts flying through her head over what this could be about. Her mind finally hit on something concrete, but she wouldn't bring it up in case she was actually right. It didn't seem like the time, and she was sure Abby would tell her when she was ready. "I really am sorry that I took it out on you," Abby continued.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Jess asked, echoing Becker's earlier question for her.

"I will, I'm just not ready to yet."

"Ok." Jess decided that she couldn't sit still anymore. She reached out and placed her hand on Abby's arm. "You know I'm here for you whenever you're ready, if you want to talk to me about it, right?"

"I do." Abby sent her a sad smile. "Thanks Jess."

Jess reached over with her other arm, and drew her dear friend into a hug. "Anytime." She smiled at her when she pulled away. "Now come on, we have a show to put on." Abby smiled a bit wider, and got out of the car to walk with Jess back into the ARC.

The girls walked straight into the lab adjacent to the canteen. Connor and Emily were already inside with a few others. Abby gave Jess' arm a squeeze and walked over to hug her fiancé. Connor shot Jess a kind smile over Abby's head, and she returned it fully. It was only then that the nervous chatter began in the room. People came and went to ask final questions while makeup and costumes were applied.

"Damn!" Jess shouted, a split second before her makeup sponge touched her cheek.

"What is it?" Connor asked.

"I left the most important accessory in my locker!" Jess dropped her sponge, rose to her feet and started for the door.

"No!" Emily yelled. Everyone turned to look at her, and she pointed to Jess' torso. "You can't go out like that! Everyone will know…"

Everyone was silent for a second, until Abby sprang into action. She yanked her t-shirt over Jess' head, and draped her scarf around her neck. She then grabbed a lab coat hanging by the door, and buttoned it up around Jess' ensemble. She fluffed her hair to cover her shoulders and neck a bit more, and then nodded in approval. Jess looked to Emily, who echoed Abby's action. Jess then felt safe to leave the room, closing the door quickly behind her.

She was so intent on what she had to get, that she didn't even look at where she was going or who she was passing. When she got to the locker room, she moved quickly towards her locker, but stopped short a few feet away from it.

Attached to the front of her locker was a pair of beautiful roses (one red, one different shades of red and pink), attached to a note with a blue ribbon. She smiled shyly as she moved closer. Jess carefully took down the roses and sniffed them, grinning as the scent hit her nose. Clutching the roses in her fingertips, she opened the note.

**_'Even though I have no idea what you're doing for tonight's show, I know you'll be amazing. – H'_**

Jess' smile widened even more. She knew he'd be there in the audience, but this was completely unexpected. She bit her lip and studied the lovely petals of the flowers in her hand. Reluctantly, she carefully set the roses on the shelf in her locker, and grabbed the bag at the bottom. Jess was all smiles as she and her best accessory headed back to the lab.


	10. The Wizard and I

A/N: And on with the show! Please note that all borrowed song lyrics are in italics. Here we go!

************ The Wizard and I ************

"Really, Jess, how are you now nervous? I'm positively terrified," Emily admitted once they were all dressed and hiding behind the curtain.

"I honestly have no idea," was the reply she received from the completely disguised woman. "I'll be a wreck for the few minutes before I first go onstage, but that's usually it," Jess said.

"Lucky you," Abby said.

"Yes, but Jess has a bit of a downside," Connor added. "Her entrance is probably the most anticipated out of everyone in this play."

"Thanks Connor, that helps a lot," Jess hissed sarcastically. She moved to the very edge of the curtain, thankful that her dark costume helped hide her in the shadows. Poor Emily was confined to the back of the space, as her bright costume would draw all the attention to her.

Jess peeked out at the canteen and smiled. Becker and his men had constructed low-rise bleachers to make it a bit easier for everyone to get a good view of the performance, and every seat on them was filled. There were chairs near the door for the on-call crew, along with a desk for the portable ADD. Everyone was chatting excitedly as they settled themselves in for the show.

And right there, sitting front row centre, were Matt and Becker. Jess watched the pair talking quietly, occasionally grinning or laughing. She knew that they'd be there, but didn't expect that. The butterflies in her stomach lifted off the ground a bit, but she breathed deeply to relax her nerves.

"This is going to be amazing," she said to no-one in particular.

"How can you be certain?" Emily inquired.

"What's the worst that can happen?"

"The set breaks," Connor stated.

"So we perform without it," Jess countered.

"Everyone forgets their lines," Abby offered.

"We have a prompter at the edge of the stage."

"The music is terrible," Emily suggested.

"The band has had their music memorized for weeks now, and you've already ensured that everyone singing has some serious talent."

"The whole thing is just a big flop, then!" Emily really was nervous. She was never this negative.

Jess smiled and moved to wrap her arm around her friend's shoulders. "This is probably the most interesting thing that we've ever done here at the ARC. It'll be a hit, I promise."

Emily nodded and took a deep breath. She turned to the group as a whole. "Places, everyone!" Suddenly every person there was scurrying around frantically. The stage manager ordered the canteen lights put out, and as the applause started, they were ready to go.

The band started playing the main overture, and Jess grinned widely as she hummed along. The stage lights came up to reveal the elaborate set, and the cast onstage began singing. Jess had a good ten minutes until she first entered, so she stood at the side of the stage and enjoyed the spectacle in front of her.

Emily floated onto the stage as Glinda in the large bubble, and Jess watched as Matt and Becker lit up at the sight of her. She wondered (a bit selfishly) if they would do the same when she came on stage. Or if they'd even recognize her… A few moments later, Abby made her grand entrance, also to cheers. While she'd been harder to recognize than Emily, she played up her role as Madame Morrible wonderfuly.

A few minutes later, as the butterflies were starting to really take flight, Jess trudged onto the stage in character, head and voice low. She spoke her lines fluidly, and played well off of her friends. As she lowered her head at one point, she caught the look on Becker's face as he stared hard at her.

Becker couldn't figure it out. He was positive that he KNEW the girl on stage, but couldn't place her. She wore a calf-length dress-coat, and her long black hair was pulled into a plait at the back of her head. Her green skin glowed in the stage lights, but her face was shadowed by a pillbox-style had on her head and oversized reading glasses. The way she moved and spoke was very familiar…

When Abby started to sing the intro to Jess' first song, she knew that this was it. This would be the moment they figured it out, if at all. As Abby left the stage, Jess decided to break the fourth wall a bit and sing directly to the audience in front of her.

_"Did that really just happen?_

_Have I actually understood?_

_This weird quirk I've tried to suppress or hide_

_Is a talent that could help me meet the wizard_

_If I make good._

_So I'll make good."_

Becker's eyes widened in recognition. The voice was clear and confident, and as she raised her head to hold her longer notes, he finally managed to see her familiar blue eyes. All the pieces came together and his jaw dropped.

Matt leaned over to him, following the same thought path. "Is that…?"

"Jess," Becker whispered, not taking his eyes off her for a second. She looked incredible, but completely uncharacteristic. He'd never seen her all in black before, and wondered with a grin if she'd had to endure any ribbing about dressing like him. Her voice captivated him as she put her soul into the song.

Jess didn't have time to see if the guys had figured out who she was, but kept singing her heart out. As her song ended with a loud final note from the band, the crowd in front of her hooted and hollered as they clapped for her. She took a second to catch her breath and hurried offstage.

She and Emily played off each other very well during their first duet together, having fun as they sang about despising each other. When Connor made his grand entrance a little while later, everyone in the audience had a bit of a laugh: the idea of him as an overconfident student wasn't actually that far-fetched, but the thought of him as a playboy jock was. He and Emily worked well together onstage, but didn't have fantastic chemistry because they hadn't known each other that long. They still sang great together though.

As she sat onstage in her second costume – a sleeveless dress that was meant to pass as a nightgown – she forced herself not to smile as Emily danced around the stage singing about being popular. She looked so unlike herself in the short, puffy, pink dress, but was unbelievably convincing as she tried to primp Jess' wig into a respectable hairdo.

Then came time for Jess' sweet, solo ballad about how she was too different. When she was left alone onstage (save for Emily and Connor in the background), she faced the audience with such a lonely expression that everyone's heart ached for her. And when she started singing, there were actually tears falling from her own eyes. She sang so beautifully that everyone could practically feel her pain. Originally she'd planned on singing it as if she were speaking to Becker about how she felt, but since things had changed between them, she had to adjust things a bit.

_"Every so often, we long to steal_

_To the land of what might have been,_

_But that doesn't soften the ache we feel_

_When reality sets back in…"_

Becker watched his beautiful Jess sing out with more emotion than he'd ever seen. He wondered where it was coming from, especially when she seemed to be singing the last few lines directly to him.

_"Don't wish, don't start,_

_Wishing only wounds the heart,_

_I wasn't born for the rose and pearl,_

_There's a girl I know,_

_He loves her so,_

_I'm not that girl."_

The applause was warm as Jess walked offstage. Just as she left, she glanced at Becker who was grinning with pride at her.


	11. Defying Gravity

A/N: This is the song/scene that started the entire story, so I couldn't help but use all of the lyrics. :) Oh, and here's one more casting choice too... ;)

************ Defying Gravity ************

"Ok, Jess, here's the big one," she whispered to herself backstage as she was helped into her third costume of the night. "No pressure, but this'll either make or break the show…"

"You'll be fine," Emily said, coaxingly.

"She'll be better than fine, she'll be amazing," Connor stated.

"Thanks guys," she whispered gratefully. Nodding at the three soldiers standing at the side of the stage, she waited as they nodded back, signalling that they were completely ready for her.

Walking out on stage with Emily and Connor, they met Abby and a few others for the start of the lead-up scene. After another quick song, it was time for the appearance of the wizard himself – and Lester got the biggest applause of all when he came onstage dressed fully in green, singing about being a sentimental man.

The big dramatic scene leading up to Jess' climactic song was a hit. Tensions ran high, and Jess actually tapped into some old feelings she'd had from back when she'd first arrived at the ARC. Lester had been trying to toughen her up (she knew now), but at the time, she'd felt so used and angry. So she took all of that and poured it into the scene.

And suddenly, without warning, and without time to even think about how nervous she was, her big song was upon her. She and Emily stood alone on the stage, and Jess started singing softly.

_"Something has changed within me_

_Something is not the same_

_I'm through with playing by the rules of someone else's game_

_Too late for second guessing_

_Too late to go back to sleep_

_It's time to trust my instincts, close my eyes and leap!"_

She started to put a bit extra energy into her singing, emphasizing the plan. Becker, Matt and the rest of the audience watched anxiously. They could tell something was coming, but didn't know what.

_"It's time to try defying gravity_

_I think I'll try defying gravity_

_And you can't pull me down!"_

Emily jumped in at this point, bringing Jess a bit back to herself as her friend sang.

_"Can't I make you understand?_

_You're having delusions of grandeur!"_

Jess interrupted her with a sweeping of her arm.

_"I'm through accepting limits_

_'Cause someone says they're so!_

_Some things I cannot change, but till I try, I'll never know!_

_Too long I've been afraid of_

_Losing love I guess I've lost_

_Well if that's love, it comes at much too high a cost!_

_I'd sooner buy defying gravity,_

_Kiss me goodbye, I'm defying gravity_

_And you can't pull me down!"_

She was getting closer and closer to the high point of the song, and Jess was getting more and more passionate about what she was singing. Jess turned to Emily and looked her dead in the eye as she held out the broomstick in her hand. "Glinda, come with me. Think of what we could do…together!"

_"Unlimited_

_Together we're unlimited_

_Together we'll be the greatest team there's ever been_

_Glinda,_

_Dreams the way we planned 'em."_

Emily, who had looked extremely reluctant a minute ago, reached out and held the broom with her as she replied.

_"If we work in tandem."_

Smiling at each other, they sang together, getting excited.

_"There's no fight we cannot win_

_Just you and I defying gravity_

_With you and I defying gravity."_

Suddenly Emily came back to herself (or her character at least), and pulled away from Jess and the broom as Jess continued to sing.

_"They'll never bring us down."_

She looked at her again. "Well? Are you coming?"

'Glinda' moved to the side of the stage and picked up a black cloak. Draping it over Jess' shoulders, she sang softly to her as she shook her head.

_"I hope you're happy, now that you're choosing this."_

Nodding sadly, 'Elphaba' looked at her companion.

_"You too. I hope it brings you bliss."_

Together, they clasped hands, and sang.

_"I really hope you get it,_

_and you don't live to regret it._

_I hope you're happy in the end_

_I hope you're happy, my friend."_

Smiling at each other, Jess leaned in and kissed Emily's cheek before dashing offstage for a few seconds. As she ran back out shouting at the guards who had come onstage and grabbed Emily's arms, she threw her cloak back out of her way with another sweep of her arm.

As she opened her mouth to continue singing, the music swelled, and Becker suddenly had a feeling of déjà vu. The voice that came out of Jess a second later was so unbelievably powerful that no one in the audience could believe that it was coming from sweet, little Jess.

_"So if you care to find me_

_Look to the western sky!_

_As someone told me lately,_

_Everyone deserves the chance to fly!"_

As soon as she said 'fly', everything clicked together in Becker's head, and he knew what was about to happen. Jess was gently lifted off the stage as she continued to sing, and the audience went nuts. She rose high above everyone's heads, a long extension of her cape was the only thing touching the ground.

_"And if I'm flying solo, at least I'm flying free_

_To those who'd ground me, take a message back from me_

_Tell them how I am defying gravity_

_I'm flying high, defying gravity_

_And soon I'll match them in renown!"_

She was right into it. 'Time for the big finish,' she thought, as she looked down at various members of the captive audience.

_"And nobody in all of Oz_

_No wizard that there is or was_

_Is ever gonna bring me down!"_

Emily stretched her arm up to Jess' floating figure, and sang with her as others came onto the stage.

_"I hope you're happy!"_

Everyone new to the stage stared at Jess with rage as they sang.

_"Look at her, she's wicked!_

_Get her!"_

Jess took a deep breath and kept going, letting her voice carry through the canteen.

_"Bring me down!"_

The crowd onstage below her kept going with their rant-song.

_"No one mourns the wicked!_

_So we've got to bring her…"_

Determined to let her last note linger until the swelling music came to a close, Jess hauled in one last huge breath and let loose, her voice clear as day.

_"Ahh!"_

Joining her, the mob below sang their last note as powerfully as they could.

_"Down!"_

As the music crashed at the end, Jess thrusted her broomstick up into the air and looked up at the ceiling. After a second's pause, thunderous applause could be heard from the audience as the lights onstage came down and the curtain closed quickly.

As soon as the stage was enclosed, the low lights came on, and the soldiers who had raised Jess up slowly and carefully lowered her back down to earth. The roar of the crowd outside could still be heard, and everyone hiding on- or off-stage started to cheer as well. As soon as Jess hit the floor of the stage safely, she was engulfed in a massive group hug by her fellow performers.

"Make or break, eh?" Connor shouted happily.

"Definitely 'make'!" Emily and Abby shouted together. Jess said nothing, just let them all be happy. She was ecstatic, but just wanted to try and calm her pounding heart. Right now she wanted nothing more than to burst through the curtains, leap into Becker's arms and kiss him senseless. But she managed to keep her wits about her, and stay hidden.

Meanwhile, in the audience, Matt and Becker were in awe of Jess' song. "I didn't know she had that in her," Matt commented, visibly stunned. Becker just shook his head in disbelief, unable to form words. He wanted to go hug Jess in triumph at what she'd done, but didn't want to break her stride. He just let the image of her singing her heart out in earnest stay in his mind as he and Matt stood up to stretch their legs.

After a few long minutes of self-congratulations behind the curtain, Jess pulled away from the group, dragging Abby with her. "Come on, I need your help."

"With what?" the made-up blonde asked.

"I need to re-greenify myself before intermission is over, and I can't do it alone." Abby laughed as she and Jess moved stealthily out of the stage area and through the halls to their make-up lab.


	12. One Short Day

A/N: Since I'm off sick from work today - two chapters!

************ One Short Day ************

Twenty minutes after the spectacular act-ending number, everyone was settled back in their seats. The performers were all backstage and ready to continue on with the show.

The second half started well, with the tension between Emily and Connor working in their favour for a change. Nobody had ever thought they'd see Connor dressed up in his soldier's uniform, but he held his own with it.

They also seemed to enjoy Jess (whose green and black lace gown gave Becker a few wicked thoughts of his own) confronting Lester about the Wizard's lies. It was weird seeing Lester not be sarcastic, but he worked well with the part anyway. Many in the audience also wondered about Jess' anger about being used - was it just acting, or did it come from somewhere inside of the tiny girl…?

Matt seemed to have a glazed look on his face as he watched Emily move gracefully around the stage as Glinda. The character had reverted to a sweet, shy girl, and her own quiet personality came shining through. When she sang about losing the man she loved to the 'Wicked Witch', the sweetness and longing was well shown.

As Emily slid offstage, sadly, Connor and Jess came back out. They'd worked really hard on this next number, and really tried to play up the relationship between their characters. As soon as he heard the first few words of the song, Becker knew that he wouldn't enjoy it as much as he had the rest.

_"Kiss me too fiercely,_

_Hold me too tight,_

_I need help believing_

_You're with me tonight."_

Without warning, unbidden images flashed through his head of Jess singing those words to him as he trailed kisses down her neck. In his mind, she sat in his lap facing him, shoulders bare and fingers trailing lines of shivers up and down his bare chest. He leaned her backwards and kissed down to her collarbone before pulling her back up and into a smoking kiss. His hands tangled in her hair and he heard her moan in his mind as she wrapped her arms around him to get as close to him as possible. Their kisses were hard and passionate, and he felt drunk off of the idea of them.

Opening his eyes as he felt his face get warm, he heard Connor singing back to Jess as he pulled her close. Becker clenched his fists at his side, watching his girl sing passionately to the scientist that stood onstage with her. Her arms were wrapped around his neck as he had his around her waist. He reminded himself that they were just friends and that he really would be the one holding her like that later that night. He was convinced that this was the only reason he kept from leaping onstage and pummelling their friend.

Matt glanced at Becker out of his peripheral, and chuckled quietly at the sight of his clenched fists, rigid jaw and angry glare. He elbowed him in the ribs, and the Captain looked over at him. Matt raised an eyebrow and Becker shook his head before facing the stage again. Matt let out another chuckle before he faced front once more.

Connor was suddenly being grabbed by a few guards onstage, and being taken to what looked like a cornfield, while Jess stood closer to the middle and sang angrily. She sang about being punished for good deeds, and resigning herself to being completely wicked as everyone already thought her to be.

After she raced offstage came a very brief scene involving witch-hunters that actually caused Becker a flash of fear. Despite knowing that it was only a show, the idea of anyone hurting Jess made him want to hit something. Once again, he kept his concern for her in check, calming himself even more when she safely returned to the stage for a confrontation with Emily.

They bickered for a few minutes about good and bad, and what to do with what was coming. Finally, Jess seemed to resign herself to her fate as she told Emily that it was all up to her now. Emily then took her cue and began to sing sweetly over the band.

_"I've heard it said that people come into our lives_

_For a reason, bringing something we must learn_

_And we are led to those who help us most to grow_

_If we let them and we help them in return."_

Becker smiled at the words, thinking of how that had been Jess for him. He'd met her at a time when he's been at his darkest: Abby, Connor and Danny had gone through the anomaly, and Sarah had just been killed in action. He was convinced that he'd never come out of his funk, and then out of nowhere, there she was. She very quickly (although it took him a very long time to admit it) became his anchor, helping to slowly pull him back from the brink. Her sweet disposition had been unwanted at first, but he'd come to rely heavily on it. He was sure that if the beetle incident at the ARC had ended differently, he would have spiralled back into the darkness that had consumed him the previous year.

Suddenly she was singing again, and he recognized the voice from that day he passed the lab. Jess had been the one singing with Emily!

_"It well may be that we may never meet again_

_In this lifetime, so let me say before we part,_

_So much of me is made of what I've learned from you_

_You'll be with me like a handprint on my heart,_

_And now whatever way our stories end,_

_I know you have rewritten mine by being my friend."_

Her voice was so clear and sincere that Becker felt a tug on his heart. Definitely the song that spoke about the way he felt about her. The girls were singing together now, about forgiveness and blame, and how nothing mattered anymore. The audience clapped wildly as they held a lovely harmonic note together before continuing with their song.

Just as they were getting ready to (he assumed) finish the song, Emily looked Matt dead in the eye, catching him off-guard.

_"And because I knew you…"_

Jess gazed lovingly at Becker, causing him to grin back.

_"Because I knew you…"_

Both breaking their gazes, the girls looked at each other fondly.

_"Because I knew you,_

_I have been changed_

_For good."_

The music ended around them and the pair onstage hugged as the crowd went nuts. The scene that followed, once more pulled at Becker's heart, because he was forced to watch as the shadow of Jess (as the witch, but Jess all the same) melted into nothing behind a screen. If he hadn't known the story, he'd have been a mess at the idea. For the life of him though, he couldn't remember the end of this musical. It had been a number of years since he took his sister to see it… It was then that Lester and Abby reappeared onstage, and Emily confronted them about Abby's character doing so many evil deeds (no matter what the intent was), and Lester's Wizard being the Wicked Witch's father. That one had gotten a few snickers from the audience as Lester seemed distraught at the idea. Emily sternly told them both that they were never to return to Oz as her bubble came back down to the stage.

As Emily stepped back into her bubble and was lifted off the ground, the scarecrow came tiptoeing out on stage. Glancing left and right (thus giving people the chance to recognize him), Connor dropped to his knees at centre stage and flipped a trapdoor in the stage floor open. "It worked!" he stage-whispered.

Out of nowhere, Jess appeared and the audience cheered. Connor hoisted her out of the hold and they hugged as they spoke their final lines to each other. As he moved to the back of the stage, saying that they had to leave and never come back to stay safe, Jess stayed at centre stage, looking up at Emily.

_"Who can say if I've been changed for the better, but…"_

Jess joined Emily's sweet voice, as the rest of the cast sang offstage.

_"Because I knew you…"_

_"No one mourns the wicked…"_

Emily raised her hand lightly as she sang one of the highest notes anyone had ever heard.

_"Because I knew you…"_

Jess moved towards Connor as her voice rejoined her friend's.

_"I have been changed…"_

The cast came back in as Emily was lifted off the stage in her bubble and Connor and Jess walked through the space at the back of the stage.

_"No one mourns the wicked!_

_Wicked!_

_Wicked!"_

The music crescendoed and at the lovely crash of the last note, everyone went silent and the stage went dark. A split second later, the audience was on their feet clapping and screaming.

A moment later, the curtain re-opened, and half of the cast members-at-large came forth to bow at the applause. The second half ran out on stage once they had backed up, and took their bows, before stepping back to allow the main cast a chance at their reception. One of the female canteen workers who had played the Witch of the East came out with one of Becker's soldiers to take their bows, immediately followed by one of Connor's tech geek buddies who'd played a schoolteacher of the witches.

Abby came out next, still in full costume and bowed deeply, her white wig sliding off her head as she did so. Laughing, the audience watched her back up as Lester came striding out onto the stage, arms extended wide. Everyone cheered even louder than before, not only because he had played the part well, but also to make sure that he was in a good mood for the next little while (incase they needed to ask him for anything). Once Lester finally backed away from the front of the stage, Connor came jogging out. A few deep dramatic bows and a lot of applause later, he moved to the side of the stage, and the cast parted like the Red Sea.

The space at the back of the stage that had been closed after Connor and Jess' exit had reopened as the cast moved to the sides of the stage. The lights went up even higher, and Emily and Jess walked out holding hands. If possible, the cheering grew even more deafening. The girls walked forward and bowed together. Then Jess stepped back and Emily curtsied in a very ladylike manner. Matt's smile was massive, and she winked at him before stepping back.

When Jess moved forward, the foot-stomping began. She grinned happily as she curtsied low twice, and then raised herself up again, staring around the room. She motioned for the others to step forward, and the cast took a collective bow before acknowledging their musicians to the side of the stage, as well as the tech crew at the back.

One more bow and the curtains started to close. Just as they did, Jess caught Becker's eye. She'd never seen him smiling so much. He gave her a wink and a nod, and she giggled as she grinned back.


	13. I'm Not That Girl

************ I'm Not That Girl ************

Once more, the entire cast found themselves laughing happily and sharing a gigantic group hug, only this time the tech and backstage crews had joined them. It was an amazing scene hidden on the stage.

Jess was euphoric. Everything had gone so much better than she could have ever imagined. Her throat was rubbed raw from singing her heart out, and she was completely exhausted, but she felt incredible. There was only one thing that would make it better…

"Come on, let's go see everyone!" Connor shouted, heading for the curtains. He threw them open, and jumped down to stand next to Matt and Becker. The guys clapped him on the back with big smiles, and congratulated him on the performance.

Many of the other cast and crew members hurried to follow them, but Abby, Emily and Jess held back, looking at each other. Once everyone was gone and they were left alone on the stage, the girls shared a quiet hug, listening to the loud chatter happening on the other side of the closed curtain.

"Thank you," Emily said softly. They all pulled back to see her with tears shining in her eyes. "I couldn't have done this without either of you." Jess and Abby beamed at her, assuring her that it had been their pleasure and that they'd had a lot of fun doing it. She kissed them on the cheek, and then headed offstage, planning on taking the stairs down so she could go meet the crowd.

Abby and Jess watched her go, and giggled when the crowd out front stopped talking and cheered loudly (for her, they assumed). The girls shared a look, and then Abby looked at her feet.

"Jess, I really am sorry for earlier today. I don't know what came over me," she said, cheeks flushed with shame.

"Don't you?" Jess asked, her hunch from earlier floating back into her head.

Abby's head shot up, and she fixed Jess with a wide-eyed gaze. Jess met her look with a kind one, and Abby's jaw dropped. "You know?"

"I think so, but let's hear it just incase I'm totally off the mark."

"You know that I'm…" Abby trailed off, her hand instinctively coming to rest on her stomach.

"I was right then," Jess said, happy tears for her friend glistening in her eyes. Abby grabbed her in a tight hug and the pair of them laughed through their tears.

"How did you know?" Abby demanded once she pulled back.

"The only time you ever snap like that is when you have your monthly visitor, and since we're pretty much on-schedule together, I did a little mental math. Two plus two equals…"

"Baby," Abby whispered.

"Connor knows?"

"He's so excited. I've had to threaten him every night to not say anything to anyone. With everything happening, I needed to get through this first."

"How far along are you?"

"Nearly four months. Why do you think I did all the costumes myself? I didn't want to run the risk of someone else measuring me and finding out before everything was alright." Abby flashed a sneaky grin, and Jess couldn't help but laugh.

"Crafty," Jess admitted, smiling. "I won't say anything."

"I know you won't." Abby smiled back at her. "And I will tell everyone as soon as we have the next scan in a couple weeks."

"Including Lester?"

"While I'm not looking forward to that one because he'll confine me to desk work, yes." Abby grimaced.

"I'll help you get through it," Jess said, squeezing her friend's arm. Abby looked at her again and grabbed her in another hug. "Congratulations Abs."

"Thanks. Now come on, there are people waiting for us!"

"Let's go."

Abby led the way down the offstage stairs, and then made Jess wait a moment while she went out first. When Jess looked at her quizzically as to why, Abby just smiled. The crowd cheered for Abby as she came out, and Connor ran over to his beautiful girl to dip her into a low, deep kiss. The crowd whistled and hollered at that.

After about a minute, Jess emerged from the backstage area, and was met with the loudest roar she'd ever heard. Suddenly people were scrambling around her, hugging and congratulating her on a fabulous performance. She smiled at each one of them, and thanked them individually. But despite the accolades, her heart was only half in it. She was constantly looking for one particular figure in her peripheral…

"Jess!" Connor shouted, reaching her side. He grabbed her hand and pulled her over to their little group. Matt leaned over and kissed her cheek from his position with his arm around Emily's waist.

"You were spectacular," he told her, smiling widely. She blushed and thanked him sincerely.

"Yes, Miss Parker, you were truly a sight on the stage," Lester said, sneaking up behind them and causing Jess to jump a bit when he spoke. "I don't think I've seen such a powerful presence like that in a while."

"Thank you, Lester," Jess said, spontaneously hugging him. He didn't return it, but then, she hadn't expected him to. "You were smashing yourself."

"Well of course. It was an easy role for me."

"Why's that?" Matt asked.

"Because I already am all powerful," Lester said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. They all smiled at him before he turned to walk away. Once he was a safe distance, they all collapsed into chuckles and giggles.

"That man is the poster-boy for self-confidence," Abby said, pointing a lovely white rose in the direction their leader had gone.

Jess smiled at her friend, noticing her flower, and that Emily had a pink one as well. "Well look at you two with your pretty roses," she teased. "Someone must like you," she said, winking at Connor and Matt.

"Actually, it was Captain Becker," Emily said nonchalantly.

"Oh?" Jess said, trying to not sound too interested.

"Yes, it was rather sweet of him," Emily confessed.

"Where'd he go, anyway?" Connor asked, oblivious to the flash of sadness in Jess' eyes. Matt saw it though, and decided to help a bit.

"He got called away by some of the on-call soldiers. Something about an EMD malfunction." Jess shot him a thankful smile.

"Well, why don't the bunch of us head down to the pub for a celebratory pint?" Connor suggested. "We can text Action-Man and he can meet us after he's done."

"Sounds like a plan," Abby said, grinning. Matt and Emily nodded enthusiastically, and Jess smiled wide.

"I'm in, but I'll meet you guys there. I'd like to de-greenify a bit first."

"Oh come on Jess, we could all go in our costumes," Connor suggested. Abby and Emily looked down at their dresses and then met eyes with each other and Jess.

"We're going to go change," the two said in unison, Jess nodding vigorously.

"Just give us a few minutes and the four of us can go ahead of Jess. Connor, can you let Becker know?" Abby asked. When he nodded, she pecked his cheek, and then pulled the girls towards the costume lab.

Once there, Abby and Emily changed into their street clothes, while Jess put on her nightdress costume. It showed most of the greened area on her skin, so it would be easier to access it. A shower would take too long, but she needed to be somewhere with a mirror and a sink. When Abby and Emily were ready, they walked with Jess to the locker room so she could get the makeup off, promising to send a search party for her if she wasn't at the pub within a half hour. She grinned at the pair of them, nodded in agreement, and headed into the locker room while they walked away chatting quietly.

Jess laid out her makeup remover and some cloths on the counter in front of the sink, and then looked up at her reflection in the mirror. Her eyes were bright and sparkling, and there was a soft smile on her face. Despite the green hue, she looked perfectly content. She widened her smile a bit, and reached for the hairpins holding her black wig in place. She gently removed it, careful not to pull too hard on her hair or any pins she'd missed, and set it on the side of the counter. Jess pulled out the low bun she'd put in at the start of the night, and let her long auburn hair fall loosely around her shoulders, sighing softly at the feeling of air on her scalp again. As her head aired a bit, she started to wash the green off of her hands and lower arms. It took a good amount of makeup remover, soap and water, but she quickly managed to get her skin back to its normal colour again. When her hands were dry, she ran a brush through her hair, gently teasing it back to its normal volume. Once finished, she stared at her reflection again. Yep: still smiling.


	14. As Long As You're Mine

A/N: New chapter a day early because the rest of this week is insane! I'm hoping to have the final part out this weekend, but it's going to depend on how well Christmas shopping goes...Anyway, enough of my rambling about that! I can't believe I've gotten to (nearly) the end already! It's probably a good thing, because I've started writing new material again, and would love to be able to focus on that. I had another Primeval story started about a year ago, and then hit horrible writer's block, so I left it. Earlier this week, I had my 'Aha!' moment with it, and figured out how to get it flowing again. So while I don't think those updates will be quite as quick as these ones, I hope that I can start getting new stuff out soon. Thanks to everyone for all the lovely reviews! Enjoy chapter 14!

************ As Long As You're Mine ************

"You look more like yourself already." Jess jumped at the unexpected (yet familiar) voice, and looked at the doorway using the mirror's reflection.

Becker stood leaning against the doorframe, and easy smile on his face. She tucked her hair behind her ear and shot him a soft smile back as he pushed off from the wall and walked towards her, one hand in his pocket, the other behind his back.

"I hear we had a bit of an EMD issue?" she asked casually, despite the fact that her heart had started to race the second she saw him standing there, watching her.

"Nothing that my soldiers couldn't handle, but they wanted me to be aware of what had happened and see how it had been fixed," he told her, coming to a stop directly in front of her. She could feel the heat radiating off of his body as his eyes bore into her own. He made a sudden, fairly small movement, and she glanced down.

In the hand that had been behind his back, he was holding two roses: one yellow and one blue.

Her eyes lit up, and she looked back up at his face as he gently pressed them into her hands. "You didn't think I'd give Abby and Emily one, and not you, did you?"

"Well, technically, you already gave me two," she teased.

"Yes, but those were more 'break a leg' roses," he said, leaning in towards her a bit.

"And these?" she asked, tilting her face upward.

"These are 'I told you so' roses."

" 'I told you so' roses?"

"Well I did say that you'd be amazing, did I not?"

She laughed lightly and nodded. "That you did."

"See?" he said, closing the gap between them to catch her lips in a sweet kiss. She sighed into it, and rested her hands on his chest as she continued the kiss. His arms held her waist loosely as he teased her mouth open with his tongue, deepening the kiss further.

A moment later, they both felt a buzzing from his pocket. He slowly pulled away from her and reached for his cell phone as Jess turned back to the mirror, gently placing her roses on top of her wig.

"It's a text from Connor," he told her. "They're going over to the pub and asked if I wanted to meet them." He smiled as the second message came in. "He also says that if I'm still here in half an hour, that he's coming back to get me away from work."

Jess chuckled softly. "Abby said pretty much the same thing to me."

Becker pocketed his cell phone again, and moved to stand behind her, hands again at her waist. "So why aren't you there already?" he whispered into her ear.

She shivered at the near contact, but fixed him with a pointed look in the mirror at his question. "Because I don't want to go looking like Kermit the Frog, thanks." He laughed, and she smiled. "I told them I'd be over as soon as I get some of this green off me."

"Need a hand?" he asked, his fingers dancing around her ribs. She shivered again.

"Well it would be easier to get my shoulders from where you are," she said, holding up one of the cloths and her makeup remover. He poured some of it on the grey fabric while she pulled her hair up into a clip and off her neck. Becker's breath hitched a bit at her exposed neck, but be forced himself to stay calm. Handing her back the bottle so she could use it on the other cloth she had, he gently started to rub it over the backs of her arms.

Jess forced herself to stay calm as she felt his soft touch. His strength could be felt, but he was treating her with such care that it threatened to overwhelm her mind. Her heart was still beating furiously, and she had no idea that his was too. Jess worked at the front of her shoulders and arms. "Why aren't you just having a shower to wash this off?" he inquired, trying to make small talk and distract himself. Unfortunately, as soon as the words left his mouth, a vision of her doing just that flashed through his mind…only he was in there helping her.

The same idea had pitched itself through Jess' brain as well, and she had to close her eyes briefly as a blush started to stain her cheeks. "If everyone wasn't already at the pub, I would. But it'd take too long to do that and then get myself ready. Plus, it's a bit cold out for wet hair at the moment."

He smiled, nodding. After a short pause, he looked at her reflection in the mirror. "You really were spectacular tonight." She met his gaze and gave him a brilliant smile. "Truly, Jess. I had no idea you could sing like that."

"Well it's not something I go around bragging about," she told him. "Honestly, I don't even think I'm that good, but when Emily asked me to do this, I couldn't say no."

"You don't think you're good?" he asked in disbelief.

She shrugged. "I've only ever done it for fun. I'm nowhere near as good as the people who have private training."

"Sometimes those people end up wasting their money because they don't even have half of your talent." His eyes had never left her reflection, even though hers had dropped in shyness. But now she raised her head and looked back at him in the mirror, gracing him with the sweetest smile he'd ever seen on her face (and he'd seen a lot).

They lapsed back into silence, trying to focus on the task at hand. Unfortunately, Becker's hands on her skin were causing problems for both of them, as the gentle friction of his movements was all they could focus on. They'd finished with her upper arms, so he carefully slid one of her dress straps over her shoulder so he'd have better access to the painted skin underneath. She let out a quiet gasp as he did so, and forced herself to focus on trying to get the green off of her collarbone.

Then, without warning, something happened that threw them both for a complete loop.

Becker was working the cloth over her shoulder blade with a bit extra force, because he knew that despite her calm demeanor she had been under a fair bit of stress over the last little while. So he decided to add in a bit of a massage to ease some of the tension that he could see. Over the cloth, his fingers stroked her skin gently but firmly, and he could see her eyes drifting shut as he did. If he hadn't been so focused on her, he might have missed the single word to slip past her lips as she sighed.

"Hil…"

Never in a million years had he ever thought his name could be said with such desire. He'd hated his name since he was young, but now, hearing it come from her in such a way, it was one of the best sounds he'd ever heard. While these thoughts went through his head, he happened to hit a knot in her back, and Jess let out a strangled moan as she tilted her head away, further exposing her neck to him.

That's when he snapped.

Without thinking, Becker leaned in and pressed his lips to the newly reachable skin, letting them linger with just the slightest amount of pressure. Jess froze, eyes whipping open. Her heartbeat tripled again, and she tried futilely to stay calm. His lips grazed the side of her throat, moving so very slowly towards her ear. She could feel his teeth nipping softly, and felt the tremors start inside of her as her eyes slipped shut again.

Without breaking contact with her neck, Becker placed the damp cloth on the counter and brought his hands to her waist to pull her closer to him. She felt her own cloth drift out of her grasp as she leaned into him. He trailed his fingers along her waist and around her stomach as his mouth continued to tease her neck. When he finally reached her ear, he bit down on her earlobe and she gasped at the sensation.

Taking the initiative once he had released her ear, Jess spun around on the spot and kissed Becker. Hard. Her arms flew to the back of his neck, holding him close as she raked her fingers through his thick hair. He groaned into her mouth, pushing her back against the counter as the kiss intensified. His hands had stayed at her hips when she turned, and now they slid up her ribs, agonizingly slow. Eventually, they came to rest at the top of her ribcage, holding her in place as he continued to ravage her mouth.

Jess was getting dizzy already, and clung to him like he was her lifeline. She could feel the hard planes of his body as he held her tight against him, and leaned in as close as she could. The kiss was indescribably good, and she wanted nothing more than for it to last forever. She loosened her hands a tiny bit from his neck to move them to his back, but felt her knees weaken as she did.

Without breaking the kiss even for a second, Becker, feeling Jess' sudden loss of strength, grasped her waist a bit firmer and lifted her to sit on the counter behind her. She let out a soft cry at the movement, but that cry turned into a deep moan that was swallowed by his kisses as he stepped closer to her. Her skirt bunched up a bit closer to her waist as her legs wrapped around his hips, pulling him flush against her and causing them both to let out a groan. From her new angle, she managed to start fisting his shirt at his shoulder, digging her nails into the hard muscles beneath the fabric.

Oxygen was becoming an issue for both of them, but neither wanted to pull away. Jess finally blinked first, raising her face from his to pull in a large gulp of air. He took a quick breath of his own before latching his lips onto her still-green neck, sucking hard on her pulse point. She let out a whimper and grabbed at his hair again. When he was satisfied that he'd marked her well enough through the paint, his lips travelled down to her collarbone as he leaned her back towards the mirror. He kept one hand on her back the whole time, while the fingers of the other drifted over her heated body: skimming her waist, up her chest to tease her throat and then back down to stroke the lovely bare legs that her hiked-up dress was showing off.

Becker kissed all the way down to the low neckline of her dress, and then ran his tongue along the edge of it, forcing a gasp from Jess' mouth. She then leaned down and in for another fiery kiss. He gladly obliged and the hand on her back wrapped around her even tighter as he did. The feeling of her crushed up against him was thrilling, and something that he definitely wanted to repeat over and over again. He groaned as she gently rocked her hips towards his, and pushed his own hardness back against her luscious body.

They both let out a sharp yell as Becker's phone suddenly buzzed in the pocket that was pressed intimately between them. The shock slowed their kiss a bit, and they gradually pulled their lips apart, still keeping their bodies in close contact. Becker took one look at Jess' face (lips red and puffy, cheeks flushed through her slightly faded green makeup and her blue eyes almost black with desire) and nearly forgot why he'd pulled back when the phone buzzed again. Jess' cry snapped his attention back up but did nothing to ease the lust coursing through his body at the feel of her in his arms.

Her eyes met his as he brought one hand around from her hip. He let his fingers trail along her heated skin over her dress, watching her the whole time. He slipped his hand down for the phone in his front pocket, and smirked as it brushed the inside of her thigh, causing her eyes to slam shut as she moaned for him again. Pulling the phone out and flipping it open, he read the text message and then turned his wrist to check the time.

"We have to go," he said softly. Her eyes opened again and she gazed at him longingly with darkened eyes. He held up the phone in response as she tried to calm her breathing. "Connor just texted me to see if I was on my way yet. Apparently Abby's getting ready to come back looking for you too."

Jess let out a deep sigh and nodded. Looking back up at him, she let a small laugh escape her. He looked at her quizzically, and she shifted her position on the counter a bit (delighting in the groan she elicited from him at the movement) so he could see his reflection in the mirror over her shoulder. His hair was mussed and there were traces of green paint all around his mouth. Becker laughed at the sight, and at Jess' devilish giggle before leaning in for another soft kiss. Still with her legs around him, he replied to Connor by saying that he was just finishing up a few things at the ARC and would be there soon. Within a minute, he'd received another text from the scientist. Becker chuckled as he read it, helping Jess off the counter in the process.

"Apparently I'm to check and make sure that you're finished too. Abby figures that'll be easier than her coming all the way back."

"Well at least we know they aren't going to burst in on us here," Jess said, smiling as she grabbed one of the cloths and gently rubbed it over the green on his face. He took up his own, and they made relatively short work of what remained of the de-greening process. When Jess was her normal shade of blushing pink again, she quickly washed her face and neck and dried off.

Ever the gentleman, Becker left and waited outside the locker room so she could change. She emerged looking very happy, wearing a loose-necked turtleneck sweater, jeans and a pair of heeled boots on her feet. When he eyed her legs, she gave him a shrug. "It's too cold for heels and a skirt," she said matter-of-factly, and he chuckled as he pulled her close. One long, gentle kiss later, and they headed for the ARC exit with his arm draped casually around her shoulders and all four of her roses dangling safely from her hand.


	15. For Good

A/N: And so my friends, we've reached the end of our tale. What lies herein? Well, the reason for the rating, of course (last chapter was just a teaser). ;) Actually, it's my first time submitting something like this, so I'm a wee bit nervous - not just for the reception from you all, but also because of the writing rules on the site. I don't think it's too bad (I've seen stories that have included scenes that are FAR more explicit than this one), but you never know. In any case, thank you all so very much for reading my silly little story, and for all of the kind reviews as well. I'm working on my new Primeval story as we speak, but may post something totally different (an HP one I've had on my hard drive for a few years now) in between my new writing. We'll see. Hope you enjoy the end of 'Wicked'! :)

************ For Good ************

"There you are!" Emily shouted over the crowd as Becker and Jess entered the pub. "We were starting to think you'd forgotten about us."

"Never!" Jess replied cheerfully as they came to a stop at the table. Becker signalled the bartender for their usual drinks before helping Jess slip her coat off and hanging it on the back of her chair as he pulled it out for her. She eased into the seat, thanking him, and shifted over to make sure he had enough room to get into his own chair. In doing so, she missed the curious looks from the others at the table.

Matt decided to go easy on them for a bit. "So how does it feel to be the hit of the ARC?"

Jess grinned. "Like I've just won the lottery," she answered truthfully. "I can't stop smiling."

"Yeah, because the show's the only reason," Connor muttered under his breath, earning his an elbow in the ribs from Abby.

"What was that Connor?" Becker asked as his and Jess' drinks were delivered to the table.

"Nothing of importance," Connor answered.

Becker nodded suspiciously, and raised his glass, prompting everyone to join him. "To a massive success of a show. You should all be very proud of what you've done." They all clinked glasses and took a deep sip. Jess noticed that Abby wasn't drinking her usual pint and sent her a wink. The blonde looked over at her better(?) half and he nodded at her gaze.

"So we have something we want to tell you guys," she began.

"You're eloping?" Matt said, not missing a beat.

"No," Abby replied, opening her mouth to try again.

"You're going on vacation back to the Cretaecous?" from Emily.

"No," Connor answered.

"Connor's finally admitted to only having half a brain?" Becker joked.

"No," both Abby and Connor replied, getting more and more frustrated.

"You're finally getting a flat of your own!" Jess exclaimed knowingly.

"I'm pregnant!" Abby shouted, silencing the entire table and causing Connor to grin like an idiot. Half a second later, once it sank in, everyone shrieked and shouted and hugged and congratulated them.

"I thought you weren't going to say anything for another couple of weeks," Jess said softly to Abby as she hugged her.

"I know, but I couldn't keep it in," Abby replied, shrugging sheepishly. "It's been too good a day." The girls grinned at each other.

"That explains why you're not drinking!" Emily deduced.

"And here we thought you were just feeling the after-effects of nervousness," Matt stated.

Becker had watched Jess out of the corner of his eye this whole time, and now leaned in to speak straight to her without the others hearing. "You knew, didn't you?"

She turned to him, a bit startled that he was as close to her face as he was, but smiled nonetheless and nodded. "I suspected. Abby confirmed it for me earlier tonight."

"And you managed to keep it quiet?"

"Don't sound so shocked. Connor still doesn't know your first name, does he?" she said with a wink. He nodded after a brief moment of thought, and then smiled at her, warming her on the inside.

"And just what is going on here?" Abby said conspiratorially, eyeing the exchange between Jess and Becker. "Is there something you two would like to share with the class?"

The pair turned towards her, a very faint blush decorating Jess' cheeks, but just smiled. Abby noted that their bodies stayed in constant contact the whole time, and also made note that she'd never seen Becker look so at ease. Everyone at the table had looked over at them, and it seemed that they all knew without the pair in question having to say a word.

"Well it's about bloody time," Connor stated under his breath. Matt clapped him on the back as Abby elbowed him in the ribs, and he collapsed into a coughing fit, causing everyone else to laugh heartily.

The rest of the evening progressed with a lot of chatter and laughter. Everything was fair game, including the new, unannounced relationship between Jess and Becker. They kept their comments to themselves, never admitting or denying anything, but stayed very physically close to each other over the course of the night. Becker draped his hand over the back of Jess' chair and played with her hair quite a bit, and her hand would often rest on his leg under the table. It was a lovely way to end a great night.

Once they'd had their fill, everyone headed outside to say their goodbyes. Matt and Emily left first, hands clasped tightly as they hailed a cab for their place. Connor and Abby also caught a cab, bidding Jess and Becker goodbye as they headed to the new flat they had taken possession of the week before. They had already started moving things over from Jess' place, so they decided to spend the night there.

Left alone on the corner, Jess let Becker pull her into his arms and rest his chin on the top of her head. She breathed in his wonderful scent and let herself be swept up in the feelings that she was finally allowed to express.

"May I escort you home, Miss Parker?" he asked, brushing the top of her head with a kiss.

Jess turned her face upward and brought her own lips to his. "Of course." Smiling and talking quietly, the two of them headed back to the ARC for Becker's SUV, at which point he headed in the direction of Jess' flat.

Despite her protests that she was perfectly safe, he insisted on walking her to the door. While she outwardly made a fuss, the girly-girl on the inside was squealing with delight at the idea of keeping him by her side just a few minutes longer.

"This is me," she said unnecessarily as they arrived at her doorstep. He smiled knowingly, and she wondered if she hadn't been the only one to look up everyone's personal addresses. Wordlessly, he leaned over and kissed her lightly. She moved closer to him and placed her hands on his chest as she kissed him back. When they parted after a long moment, she smiled up at him, not wanting him to go just yet. "Do you want to come in for another beer?" she asked sweetly.

He looked deep into her eyes, trying to see if there were any ulterior motives behind their innocent expression. While he knew that joining her in her small apartment alone probably wasn't the best move if he wanted to take things slow, at that moment he really didn't care. He'd waited far too long to get her into his arms and he just wasn't at the point of the night where he was ready to let go. He nodded, and she smiled as she turned to open the door.

She immediately went to the fridge and pulled out two bottles, handing both to him as she went about putting her roses in a small vase. Once finished, she turned to find him standing near the kitchen watching and waiting. She took his hand and led him over to her little sitting area. For a while they sat together on the couch, cuddling while watching a movie on TV and talking softly back and forth. It was lovely and normal, which is what both of them had craved for so long. But after a while, Becker's hand began unconsciously drawing circles on Jess' upper arm, causing gooseflesh to appear underneath her sleeve. She leaned in closer to his body, trying to focus on the movie in front of her. But he was so distracting…

It didn't take much longer for her control to break. She sat up and calmly took the beer from his hand, placing it next to hers on the small coffee table in front of them. He gave her a slightly confused look that vanished when she lunged at him, attacking his mouth with her own. He paused for just a second before wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer. Before either of them was aware of what was happening, she was suddenly underneath him on the couch, his warm body pressing her down into the soft cushions as their kisses grew more desperate.

Becker hissed at the unexpected feeling of Jess' fingernails lightly scraping along his lower back under his t-shirt. He shifted his position over her, and grabbed at her thigh. He hauled her leg over his hip, and ground his hips into hers as he licked at the inside of her mouth. She gripped his back harder as she moaned into his mouth and tugged at the hem of his shirt. She managed to distract him enough for him to help her pull it over his head, and she tossed it over the back of the couch as his hands found their way to her breasts.

Jess gasped at the sensation of Becker's fingers flexing over her cloth-covered flesh. She arched into his touch, and pulled his head back down to hers for another kiss. He took advantage of her shift, and wrapped his arms around her waist as he sat back up on the couch. He rose up to his knees on the soft leather, and helped divest her of her turtleneck. As he yanked it over her head, she heard him muttering something about 'in the way', causing her to smile slightly.

She suddenly found herself straddling his lap on her couch; never in a million years did she ever imagine she'd end up in this position. Jess brought her hands up to fist in his hair, but paused briefly when she caught him staring at her neck. His fingers came around and gently stroked the skin he had marked earlier in the night.

"Admiring your handiwork?" Jess asked teasingly, her voice laced with desire.

The left side of his mouth quirked up in a slight smile. He traced the shape of the bruise, looking at it intently. "I kinda like this," he whispered. When she looked at him curiously, he leaned over and kissed the stain on her skin. "You being marked by me…"

There were so many sarcastic comments she could have made, but Jess held her tongue…or rather, she smiled and took said tongue and moved it so it was back in his mouth. They resumed their kiss as he lifted her higher into his lap before pushing off the couch and standing. She wrapped her legs tightly around his waist and pulled back enough to say five small words.

"Second door on the left."

He pressed her close to him and continued kissing her as he stealthily moved to her bedroom door. After closing it with a kick (just in case Abby and Connor did decide to return to Jess' flat that night), he hurriedly tossed her onto her bed. She let out a giggle that quickly turned into another moan as he laid himself out on top of her, his fingers playing with the snap on her jeans. Unfastening them, he gave her a wolfish grin and went back to her neck. He kissed down her collarbone and throat, finding himself gently nipping at the skin at the centre of her chest. His mind was telling him that this was moving far too fast, and that he shouldn't take advantage of her. But his heart and body were arguing (very convincingly) that if she wasn't all for this, then that episode in the locker room never would have happened and he wouldn't be here.

Jess noticed his slight hesitation, and brought a hand up to stroke his cheek as she twined her legs around the backs of his. "You ok?" she asked when he looked up at her. "You're thinking awfully loudly."

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Becker asked, concern leaking into his voice. "I don't want you regretting any of this, and this is quite a bit farther than I had planned on for tonight."

She giggled, and he gazed at her in confusion. "You're asking me this now?" she queried, glancing down at the position they were in. He followed her line of sight and chuckled softly.

"Well you know, I have proven that I'm just a bit on the slow side when it comes to women," he stated. The blunt honesty in his teasing tone caused her to laugh whole-heartedly. He grinned at her reaction, loving the sound and the fact that he'd brought it out of her. She tried to apologize, but could barely get it out through the giggles. Once she'd calmed a bit, he changed his expression back to a serious one, and brought his eyes to hers again. "I just don't want to take advantage of you."

"You're not," she said, gently rolling her hips into his and causing him to drop his head and his eyes to close with lust. "I'm right here with you."

When he looked back up at her, his eyes were black with passion. "Jess, if I kiss you again, I won't ever be able to stop."

Her hands were on his cheeks as she brought her lips close to the side of his face. She let her breath tease his ear and felt him tense over her. "I don't ever want you to stop," she whispered as she leaned in to nip at the lobe.

That was all the reassurance he needed as he wrenched his face out of her grasp and kissed her roughly. Her hands went for his waist as his reached around her back and unclasped the scrap of blue lace that was covering her upper body. She'd managed to get his belt buckle and pants undone before he raised her hands above her head to remove the offending garment. He once again kissed down her neck and then moved his mouth to take in the tip of her creamy breast. Jess let out an impassioned cry at the contact, and he used the distraction to push her jeans down over her hips. Pulling away from her just long enough to yank them down her legs and off, he came right back up and began feasting on her other breast. She gasped once more and raised her hips to grind against him, feeling him harden against her body. He was surprised by the move, and Jess used that to her tactical advantage. Hooking her legs around him again, she managed to flip him over on the bed.

Becker was both impressed and incredibly turned on by the move. Jess was now straddling his waist, and the glint in her eyes looked positively evil. She began her assault immediately, leaning in to brush her lips teasingly along his neck. She alternated her lips and tongue as she descended his body, paying close attention to the spots that made him flinch. Becker threaded his hands into her silken hair and tried to keep his calm as best he could. He felt her hands somewhere near the edge of his trousers, but couldn't really concentrate on anything other than Jess' lips. His past partners had never been this attentive to him, always more focused on their own pleasure. His Jess really was something else…

He hadn't even realized that she'd removed the last of his clothing until he felt her lips close around him. He let out a shout and his entire body jerked in surprise. Jess let her tongue and teeth gently stroke the sides of his shaft, and she couldn't help but smirk at the terribly vulgar words that flew from his lips because of her actions. She slowly set up a rhythm, bobbing her head up and down over him as he just kept repeating his moans of her name over and over. She could tell that he was trying desperately to cling to some semblance of sanity, but she wanted to make him lose his mind with ecstasy. So she increased her pace and pressure a bit. Becker's hands grabbed at her long hair, trying to pull her up to him, and she could feel his hips trying so hard not to thrust into her mouth. Jess pulled off of him for a few seconds, and looked up to meet his heavily-lidded gaze.

"Let go," she commanded before dropping her mouth over him again. As soon as she said those two small words, Becker knew that he would obey; it felt too good to not do as she wanted. His head fell back against the bed as she continued, and like the good soldier he was, he followed her orders. Within a mere few minutes, he was clutching the back of her head and shouting her name to the heavens as he came. Jess never broke her pace, lapping up his essence once he was done. Then, when she felt his hands drop away from her head as he tried to collect himself, she began her slow, tantalizing ascent up his beautiful body, kissing and licking the contours of his muscles as she went.

Becker forced his breathing back into a normal pattern as Jess climbed up his body, looking like the cat who'd just swallowed the canary. The look in her eyes was positively sinful, and that coupled with the dangerous smirk on her face half-hidden by her tousled hair was probably the sexiest sight he'd ever seen. Suddenly forgetting his exhaustion, he grabbed her upper arms and brought her up to lay across his body, slamming her lips to his.

And suddenly he felt drunk. If someone had tried to tell him that he'd actually enjoy the taste of himself, he would have sworn up and down that they were nuts. But as he tasted himself on Jess' lips, mingled with her own intoxicating spicy flavour, he was surprised at the fact that he actually didn't mind it; so much so that he could feel himself hardening again (already!).

Feeling that he'd given Jess enough control for the time being, he took advantage of her position atop him to roll them over on her bed. He pulled back from their kiss and gazed down at his beautiful Jess; hair splayed out over the comforter, eyes hazy and passion-filled, swollen lips and flushed skin. He knew in that moment that he'd never be happy with anyone else. Sure, he'd been leaning towards that train of though for a while now, but this one moment solidified it for him. She was it. There would never be anyone else who could make him feel this way.

As the emotions swelled in his chest, his hands slid sensually down her sides, drawing a long gasp from her parted lips. Becker slipped her last remaining article of clothing down her legs, ignoring the fabric as it fell to the ground. His fingertips skimmed the soft, smooth skin on her lovely legs, trying to feel as much of them as they could. As he felt her start to squirm under his touch, his lips were drawn to her throat and chest again. He nipped and licked and sucked and even bit her delicate skin. She hissed his name again in pleasure, and he revelled in the fact that it still sounded amazing coming from her.

His fingers had finally made it up to her thighs, and he could feel her trying to push her body into a position where he would be touching her where she wanted it the most. He brought his hand teasingly close to her centre, and she alternated between gasps and moans as he got closer with each stroke. Then, without warning, his fingers were inside her and she shrieked in ecstasy. She moaned his name again and again as he slowly stroked her walls, his thumb coming up to tease the sensitive bundle of nerves above. Her entire body arched up at his touch, and Becker had to rest one of his hips against hers to keep her from moving out of his reach. As his fingers started moving faster, her voice got louder and louder with every press of his digits, and it didn't take long at all before she suddenly came apart in his arms with a scream. Her body convulsed around his hand, but he didn't stop moving his fingers, even when she begged him to stop because it was too much. Less than a minute later, she was shouting his name again as she came once more.

She collapsed against the soft bedcovers, her body feeling completely boneless. He withdrew his hand from her, and she opened her eyes in time to see him licking his fingers clean. The shivers that flew up and down her body at the sight were more powerful than she'd expected, and she felt herself getting aroused all over again. As he finished what he was doing, her fingers came up to stroke the skin that covered his muscular chest and abs, and she somehow managed to find the strength to sit up and crush her mouth to his in a searing kiss.

Becker's hands came around her back as he pushed her back down onto the bed, laying himself fully on top of her once more. He used his knee to push her legs just a little further apart, and then looked her dead in the eye, asking for this one last permission. Jess nodded, almost imperceptibly, and he wasted no time, kissing her passionately as he thrust inside of her for the first time. They both cried into the other's mouth, the sensation of finally being joined together like this quickly becoming overwhelming. Like everything else he'd done to her so far, Becker set the pace slowly, giving her the chance to get used to him.

When Jess started raising her hips to meet his, their pace increased. She ran her nails along the skin of his back, not hard enough to draw blood, but wanting to mark him like he had earlier with her. Their tongues battled for dominance in their kiss as their bodies mimicked the actions of their mouths. Both of them knew that they had been so turned on by their foreplay that this wouldn't last long. But neither of them cared because it felt too damn good.

Becker's thrusts were becoming harder and sharper, and Jess loved every second of it. Their breathing became heavier between kisses as the passion mounted. Jess couldn't believe how fast her body was readying for that cliff jump again, so soon after his earlier torment. She knew she couldn't take much more, and only hoped that she lasted long enough to go over the edge with him. She had no idea that he was thinking the exact same thing. Jess had tangled her legs around the backs of his thighs and braced her feet against the bed to help give her more leverage. She met him stroke for stroke as their movements got sloppier the closer they got to their ultimate end.

Becker realized how close she was when she started to scream his name. A wave of relief washed over him as their movements became completely erratic. He felt her inner walls start to clench around him, and that was all it took to bring him right to where she was. The orgasm washed over both of them as they shouted for the other, hands scrabbling at bare skin as they continued their thrusts. Their bodies convulsed and contracted, but not once did they sever contact as the spasms wracked their bodies.

A few moments later, completely spent, Jess' fingers released their vice grip on Becker's shoulders, and she allowed her body to relax against the bed. He half-collapsed on her, not wanting to crush her with his weight. They lay like that, still joined and breathing heavily for a moment, before he carefully pulled out of her. They both cried out at the loss, but said nothing as he rolled onto his back next to her. His arms drew her close to his side, and they lay on top of the covers like that, trying to catch their breath as their heartbeats slowly returned to normal. Jess rested her head on his shoulder, and he entwined his hand with hers on his chest.

"That was…" she trailed off, breathless.

"Incredible," he finished, feeling her nod against his skin. Becker leaned over and kissed the top of her head, feeling her sigh deeply and squeeze his hand tighter. After a moment of silence, he felt it would be ok to say what had been on his mind for the last few days. "Jess?" he asked.

"Yeah?" she answered, still out of breath.

"I love you," he whispered. Her breath caught in her throat, and he could feel her smiling into his chest. A few seconds passed before he heard her voice, strong despite her exhaustion.

"I love you too." He looked down as she shifted to bring her face up to his in a gentle kiss. When they pulled apart, she gave him a wicked grin. "You know that you're stuck with me for good now that you've said that, right?"

Laughing, he managed to maneuver them underneath the comforter, still keeping her close to his side. "I can handle that," he told her. She giggled as she nestled her cheek over his heart. No other words were spoken, and they eventually drifted off to sleep in each other's arms.


End file.
